Monsters and Men Table 2 (Inactive)

Game Master tumbler

Kishan moves through the door with her sword drawn.

"Drachman, left, I'll take right; Jackson, keep us covered. Julian, stay close. John, can you sense anything about this part of the NeverNever?"

Once in her defensive position, Kishan casts her gaze about, looking for threats, as well as any of the odd mystical phenomenon that tend to occur naturally in the NeverNever.

Notice/Magic Awareness: 1d20 + 17 ⇒ (20) + 17 = 37

Kishan steps onto the stone balcony that encircles the top level of the tower, her coat blowing back in the stiff, cold wind. The place smells of bird nests and mold, all carried away on the breeze. There is no indication of life here, not even birds on the wind. Other than the standard uneasiness that mortals might feel in the NeverNever, you have no sense of danger.

Aaron can hear the soft rumble of massive ice chunks scraping together below, an almost subsonic frequency.

This place seems to be abandoned.

John sniffs the air and brushes his fingers over the stone railing.

"This stone is old, formed in fire then frozen in anger."

"Stay alert. Is everyone going to be warm enough? I have an emergency blanket and some sleeping bags in my pocket, but no winter coats. My jacket will protect me, but if anyone wants one of the others, let me know."

"This place looks empty, but I doubt that door was there for nothing. This place has significance, and I believe the arsenal was their to protect it; either to keep people out, or to keep something in. In either case, whatever is here is dangerous; either because it is too dangerous to be allowed into the wrong hands, or because it is too dangerous to be allowed into our world."

For some reason I find myself looking forward to a Dungeon Crawl here... I love odd juxtapositions, like a fantasy world dungeon in the middle of a modern urban setting. Many of my favourite characters I've created exemplify this, like an Android in a fantasy setting, or a wizard in a super hero setting. It rubs some GM's the wrong way, but what makes any given setting the most interesting to me is to take a trope and turn it sideways, or place it in the 'wrong' setting. Bring on the crawl!

"I'm not sure I want to be here any longer than we need to be. This has all the hallmarks of a Winter Fae's temper tantrum, and a big one. I like my limbs warm and mobile."

"Let's get moving, I can hear the ice shifting below."

Aaron draws Gram and moves in, eyes open to wide to every spectrum.

I should have mentioned before that the Way, the established shortcut, leads to the ship frozen in ice, which has a port back to ... somewhere.

Aaron moves around the balcony, discovering a barred window of human proportions. Peering in, he sees an icy floor covered with rushes and knotted with large clots of bird droppings. Nothing jumps out to eat him, but he does notice many crows nesting in the rafters. They stare back at him with eyes glinting and beaks silent.

I'm assuming the door is still open.

Stepping through the portal after the others, he was quick to shut the door lest anything try to get through. Pulling his coat closed, and mentally thanking Dresden for the idea, he kept his eyes open and gun sweeping the area for any hostiles. "I almost prefer the burning building," he said wryly.

"Where are we?" Julian asks to no one in particular. "I've been living above this place all my life and I didn't even know it?" He takes in the view. "It's beautiful, but something about it... I just don't like it."

It should be noted that in the NeverNever, Julian and John look somewhat different than their normal selves.

Care to describe them? Whoever has the insight on what they look like now?

In the NeverNever, Julian would appear more like a well-built marble Greek statue, with Hebrew and Latin script glowing dark orange. Most notable of the script would be "Malleus Malificarum" written on his forehead. For anyone who could read Hebrew or Latin, the writing is a declaration that Julian is a weapon of his people, known as "The Hammer", created to destroy the witches and wizards that mean his community harm.

I should have mentioned before that the Way, the established shortcut, leads to the ship frozen in ice, which has a port back to ... somewhere.

Not sure I understood this; I believe we're on the top level of a tower in the ocean, right? So are you saying there is a ship in the ice down bellow that we recognize from the established ways (the known shortcuts through the NeverNever)? Or did I miss something else entirely.

Turning around to check the locations of her companions, Kishan shows a look of shock on her face when she sees Julian's form. Her lips move as she reads the script on his forehead. She is a scholar, as knows Latin fluently, in addition to a few other languages. Not that she would need it to recognize that script. Malleus Mallificarum. The infamous Witches Hammer.

"Julian! What...?"

In the NeverNever, John takes on a harder, sharper look. His eyes sink into his skull, becoming darker and beady. His nose is slightly longer and sharper, his teeth become more predatory, and his red hat becomes damp with blood.

Trying to clarify the tower description.

The door opens onto a balcony. The air snaps cold and crisp, blowing against the flames of the house. The stone balcony wraps around a room atop a tower, something like Rapunzel's tower in Tangled, but impossibly high. Far below, maybe a mile below, the tower climbs out of a frozen sea. Flash frozen. Waves are frozen into the ice, as though Summer had instantly become Winter. The ocean stretches to the horizon in each direction, though in one direction their is an ancient sailing vessel, something like a massive Viking dragonboat, stuck in the frozen sea. There is a window cut into the wall at the top of the tower, leading into some sort of room within, shrouded in an unnatural darkness.

Look at the right drawing in this image.

So it is like the spire on the right, except at the bottom of the widest part of the tower there is a stone balcony with a stone railing that wraps all the way around. There is only one room atop the spire, not two like in the other drawings. There are three barred windows evenly spaced around the walls, all leading into the same room.

The whole spire sits on or grows out of a frozen sea below. Far off, you can see the dragonboat caught in the ice.

"Okay, so not of dragon blood," Jarrod said as he took a look at the boy. The skin he could deal with, but the writing all over his body freaked him out a bit. "So, I take it you have no idea why you look like some occult version of the statue of David, minus the fig leaf?"

Aaron whistles.

"That explains so much. Maybe a weird question for you Julian, but do you have any memories of your childhood?"

Remember, as a normal, average human who's only really dealt with vampires before now, I have no idea what's up with Julian. To be completely honest, I don't even know how you all guessed he was gonna be a golem.

Out of character or in character? Both are pretty much the same answer: We read a lot of fiction.

Being described as looking as though he's made of clay and statuesque, plus a Hebrew war cry (Golems were originally a Jewish creation) made it decently obvious for anyone who reads a lot of myth.

In-character, I had no clue, so I'm going to play it that way.

Meant out of character. Was he described looking that way when we first met? If so I missed it completely. As for the warcry, I just figured he was, well, Jewish.

He is described as such on his character page. =)

The big tipper is "Power Loss: Removal of Parchment".

Julian looks equally bewildered. "...What? What are you talking about?" He looks down at his hands and loses his grip on his shotgun. "What's wrong with my ha--" he lifts up his shirt to look at his stomach and sees aged marble"-- What's going on?! Why is this happening?" The boy rubs at his face, pulls at his arms, runs his hands against his hair, no longer feeling the familiar fleshiness or individual strands of hair but smooth sculpted stone.

"What... What am I?! What's happened to me! M-my childhood?! I don't know! I remember my Mom, my Dad...my bar mitzvah... Starting school... But that doesn't make me some... Holy shi-- I'm a monster?"

"I don't know exactly what is going on, but it appears the magic of this part of the NeverNever is affecting you somehow. I don't know why nothing like this happened the first time you were here, when John shifted you into the NeverNever in order to take your place. Regardless, even if it turns out you are something other than natural born human, that does not make you a monster. It is your actions that tell who you are, not your appearance, and not what material you're made of."

So anyway

Aaron waves his sword at the crows.

Shoo!"

Julian stifles any sort of emotion. At this point, he's burned himself out. He couldn't remember the last time he'd cried as much as he had today. He couldn't remember a time that he cried at all. He avoids looking at Kishan. Maybe she's right? Maybe it's the weird place changing him. Deep down, he knew.
"So what are we doing here?"

Shaking his head resignedly, Jarrod looked around the area. "We should probably be looking for a way out of here," he answered, watching with a smirk as Aaron shoo'd away the birds. "Warden, you got any way to track down another exit?"

"I believe I recognize that ship down there; the one frozen in the ice. There is a known way point there. We can either use it to get back to the real world at a known location, or to get our barrings and find the way point that corresponds to Boston."

She takes another sidelong look at Julian. "However, I don't think we should be in a hurry to leave. If we'd just wanted away from the police, I could have veiled us back at the house. Whatever is going on with Julian and his family, this place is connected to them somehow. The answers to that mystery are here, and I suggest we not throw away that opportunity." She looks around the group before finishing, "Keep on guard though; I still think that this place is likely to be dangerous. I believe we should commence with a search, level by level, and see what is here. If there are answers, I would like to find them. Remember, we are in the realm of faerie, and probably the Realm of Winter as well. Do not eat any food found here, and don't believe anything that seems to good to be true. If you meet any faeries, don't make any promises, do not accept any gifts, and under no circumstances agree to any bargains."

"When you are ready, I suggest we proceed."

Julian tightens his grip on the shotgun and makes for the tower entrance. "I guess there's no point in stalling," his voice cracks.

If I'm remembering my Dresden-verse correctly, things made of iron start feeling heavy, right?

Hefting his shotgun into a ready position, he nodded at the others and started moving around the tower, looking for a good entrance into the room. "Knew I should have kept my copy of the Brothers Grimm stories," he said aloud to nobody in particular. The moment he found a door or unbarred window, he moved half-way inside and swept his gun from side to side, covering as much of the room as he could.

Notice: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (17) + 15 = 32
Search: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (13) + 15 = 28

Moving around the balcony, Jarrod comes to a window with bars bent out. He slithers halfway through, seeing Aaron at a window on the opposite side, shooing ravens.

Looking about the dimly illuminated room, Jarrod sees the faint outline of a trap door, hidden underneath rushes strewn underneath a table on the wall near Jarrod's window.

A massive raven, nearly two feet in length, flaps down from the rafters and alights on the table. The bird eyes Jarrod, as if daring him to say, "Nevermore." He seems nonplussed by the man's weapon, or even by the presence of the others.

The bird bites at the edges of the table for a few moments, as if to say, "See how vicious I can be. Watch me bite this table."

Finally the creature turns one eye to Jarrod, who has the strangest sense of his mother calling through the house, "You close that door, Jarrod Liam Jackson. In or out, make a decision."

"'Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore. While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, as of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door. Tis some visitor, I muttered, tapping at my chamber door. Only this and nothing more,'" Jarrod quoted, almost feeling compelled to speak those words. Stepping fully into the room, shotgun in a casual rest but ready for action at a moment's notice, Jarrod gave a short bow and said, "Pardon for the intrusion, fair creature, but my companions and I are seeking passage through your domain."

The birds overhead cock their heads to the side, taking in the Detective's entrance.

The bird on the table pecks hard on the rough wood, "Kraa, kraa."

Jarrod has visions of the birds swarming down on him, Hitchcock style, but a quick shake of his head clears his vision.

Several birds, six or seven, no, definitely six, come down from the rafters to the floor pecking at the wood floor beneath the rushes.

"Maybe that means they won't bother us?" Aaron says, and tries his luck at taking the stairs down.

And so?

Aaron pries up the door in the floor. What little heat there is in the room seems to flow down into the hole below, betraying the laws of thermodynamics.

Beneath, a narrow set of stone steps spirals down. Unexpectedly, the steps are neither carved nor laid, but supported by chains.
.
The stairwell is bitterly cold, tiny ice crystals forming in Aaron's breath. Imperceptible to most, there is a faint smell of saltwater, and old fish. Ammonia.

The stairwell extends for hundreds of feet, with a small copper door, about 3 feet tall, roughly where ground level should be. The stairs continue beyond, and from there you can hear the gurgle of water, the shudder of shifting ice.

"I really don't like the looks of this," Jarrod said as his eyes looked down the strange stairs. Carefully placing his foot on the first stair, he slowly applied weight until he knew that it would support him. "Let's go down one at a time, I don't trust that these chains would support all of us at the same time. I'll go down first, then when I'm a ways down, Julian, you follow me down." With that said, he started making his way down the stairs, his shotgun ready to blast the first hostile he came across.

Aaron provides a different plan, raising his hand.

"Why don't I go down first? I have enhanced senses, and should the stairs collapse under me I can probably survive the fall. If not react in time to simply leap back to the top."

"Of course if you WANT to go first...?" the dragon man asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Ah, right, magical dragon powers," Jarrod said. "Sometimes forget that you all can do stuff like that. So, you go first, Smaug, let us know if you survive."

"That's 'O Mighty Smaug' to you." he says with a grin, then descends.

Alright, 'Chiefest and Greatest of Calamities,' after you. Kishan quirks a smile, "Finally a reference I can get behind!"

She reaches out with her senses, looking for threats or enchantments.
Awareness: 1d20 + 17 ⇒ (9) + 17 = 26

Aaron also keeps a lookout on the descent, all sense straining.

Notice: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (15) + 13 = 28

The group descends into the tower, stairs swaying gently with their passage.

Aaron's nose fills with the smell of ammonia. Viewing the massive rubbery wall in broad spectrums reveals flickering psychedelic patterns, an ultraviolet light show that feels like communication, but in a language that even his draconic gifts cannot interpret.

Kishan is equally fascinated by the mystic nature of the tower and of its strange tentacular wall. The tower throbs with power, draining heat into a bottomless well, freezing both the ice and whatever is trapped within.

Below the room with the tentacle, the stairs become more solid, carved from stone. The walls, too, change, becoming gradually larger blocks and then eventually carved from solid rock. At this point, you are well below the surface of the water. You can feel the pressure increasing as you descend.

Things to do include open the copper door to the surface, poke the tentacle, descend further.

Being ever one to tempt fate, Aaron pokes the tentacle.

With what?

Let's go for broke. I poke it with Gram.

Unsure of what he's looking at, Julian raises his shotgun and steadies it on the tentacles. "What the h--are you sure you should be doing that?"

Gram slides easily through any sort of protection around the wall of tentacle. The ancient sword sinks into the arm as though through air, drawing a fountain of blue-black blood. It may be that the tentacle shudders, or it may be that what shudders is reality itself. Something almost tangible washes over John and Julian, briefly making them seem normal, then foul beyond belief, then they return to their typical Fae appearance.

Notice: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (10) + 15 = 25
Search: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (9) + 15 = 24

"Oi! Let's leave the nice faery tentacle alone, yeah?" Jarrod said, shaking his head as he moved over to the door. Running his eyes and hands over the surface, marveling at the construction, he tried to find out if there were any kinds of traps or locking mechanisms, and if not opened the door.

Jarrod carefully studies the door, and realizes that it is strange indeed. As he carefully studies it, he notices a fine tracery of lines, like something from the Moria door. By the time he follows the lines from left to right around the door and looks back, the door has changed, covered in intricately interlaced gears and cogs, like a complex clock. Watching further, wheel appears like something from a U-boat.

Through it all, a single handle remains, shaped like a tree bent in the wind.

Seeing no obvious danger, Jarrod grabs the handle. It feels warm in his hand, but not unpleasant. With a tug, the door swings in. A small snow drift fills the bottom half of the door. Wind whips in, chapping lips.

Beyond is a small snowy pebbled beach. After about 20 feet the beach descends into ice.

"I don't know which is more weird, the dimensional door leading us to this world, or this steampunk-styled door," Jarrod said before stepping outside. "And I am really glad I started wearing this duster. Seriously, is this part of the Never Never modeled after Antarctica? I really don't want to have to pass through the Mountains of Madness."

Re-reading some Lovecraft and am currently on that story.

"Um, ya. And Mr. Drachman; speaking of ancient abominations, keep in mind that the door that brought us here was right next to a military grade arsenal, quite possibly intended to be used should something terrible try to access the door, from one side or the other. With that it mind, would you mind not stabbing the Eldrich Horror that might be the very reason that arsenal was placed there? The last thing we need is to piss off the Watcher in the Water, let alone Cthulhu's ugly stepchild."

.

..

...

Here.

raises hand
Here.

So tumbler, what is the initial premise for our game going to be? In-game intro? Pre-existing team?

For the party, in regards to character roles, I thought I'd share this, from TV Tropes. It's kind of a representation of the classic roles you tend to see in five-man groups on TV shows.

The Five Man Band

The group traditionally includes:
The Leader — (lead singer) The leader of the group. Can be a mastermind, charismatic, levelheaded, headstrong, or some combination of the four. Often also The Hero.
The Lancer — (lead guitar) Usually a contrast to The Leader. If the Leader is clean-cut and/or uptight, the Lancer is a grizzled Anti-Hero or Deadpan Snarker; if the Leader is driven and somewhat amoral, the Lancer is more relaxed and level-headed.
The Smart Guy — (keyboardist) The physically weak, but intelligent or clever member. Often nerdy and awkwardly played for comic relief. Sometimes unconventionally young (early- to mid-teens). Sometimes a Trickster and a buddy of the Big Guy.
The Big Guy — (drummer) The strongman of the team. May be dumb. Or mute.
The Chick — (vocal effects, tambourine) A peacekeeping role to balance out the other members' aggression, bringing them to a nice or at least manageable medium. The Chick is often considered the heart of the group. This role is played by a woman or girl. Someone female. Otherwise, it is not a Five-Man Band.

Working on getting info up. Probably be late tonight or early Saturday.

The Base (OK, the pawn/repair shop) as it now stands.

Equipment: Base R1 (total 5 pts)
Toughness: 5 = 0 pts
Size: Medium (Warehouse) = 1 pt
Garage = 1 pt
Living Space = 1 pt
Security Systems = 1 pt
Workshop = 1 pt

Living Space is 'enough for PL residents", which means for 7.

I'd rather not make it too fancy of a place but there's room for everyone who wants in.
If you want to add points, that's fine.
I wouldn't mind having a higher Toughness.
Anyone interested?

Is the security system magical?

Apartment/flat on the second floor over the shop (as long as you don't mind the power shorting out every now and then...)? Right now I have a base of operations, but it is a bargain place only worth 2ep.

I was picturing a tiny cottage on a wealthy family's estate. The place used to be the caretaker's cottage, but has been empty since the 50's when the previous caretaker passed away, and family switched from having a full-time caretaker to using a private off-site service that comes in several times a week. The building wouldn't have been updated since the 1890's, and therefore has little or no electricity, nor other modern amenities. Therefore, it's perfect for a wizard. It would be near the university, where Lakshmi works part time.

Of course, if it ends up that we end up as a pre-established team or what have you, and it makes sense for us to be co-located, I could see me kicking in those 2 points, for what they're worth.

Is the security system magical?

By default, a Security System is basically just what kind of locks you have on the doors. The "Defense Systems" feature can be magical.

Base contributions:

-Toughness +5 (steel reinforced concrete)
-Library (Is the bookstore area)
-Power System
-Fire prevention system
-Computer system

Other 5 equipment points go to having a sword. Swords are expensive.

Sword +3 19-20 Slashing — Med 5

The default sword is a very generic one... wonder if Tumbler would let you modify it? Make it a two hander, a hand an a halfer, or whatever...

I think the rules for equipment is that it basically costs the same as the power it is imitating costs, only in equipment points instead of Power Points.

So the Default Sword is basically:

Damage 3 (Improved Critical 1, Mighty) 5 ep[/b]

So a hand and a half/Bastard sword might be:

Damage 4 (Improved Critical 1, Mighty) 6 ep[/b]
Sword +4 19-20 Slashing — Med 6

And a big two hander might be:

Damage 5 (Improved Critical 1, Mighty) 7 ep[/b]
Sword +5 19-20 Slashing — Large 7

Since most historical swords were both cut and thrust swords (with some exceptions), it seems like it should be able to do piercing or slashing damage as desired (not that I've seen those come up much in M&M)

Since none of that is particularly crazy, it seems like it should be reasonable, if you were to want a bigger sword, or course. Having a bigger sword has drawbacks as well of course, especially if you need to carry it around in public...

I was thinking something about Bastard Sword sized. Which is a hand and a half-er I believe.

Found the applicable section:

EQUIPMENT EFFECTS AND FEATURES

An item’s equipment cost is based on its effects and features. Effects cost the same as corresponding powers (see Chapter 5), so a ranged weapon costs the same as the Blast power (which inflicts damage at range). Features are particular minor things equipment can do, similar to feats. Generally, each feature costs 1 equipment point, although some features are more expensive (or actually involve multiple features). Various equipment features are described in this chapter.

So it looks like a Hand and a Half/Bastard sword should be legal, so long as tumbler agrees it is reasonable/realistic.

I was noticing you have a pretty high Strength, so went looking for the applicable rules for equipment stacking with your underlying Strength, in regards to PL limits, of course.

BONUS STACKING

Equipment bonuses are limited compared to the bonuses granted by other effects. Generally, they do not stack with each other or other types of bonuses, only the highest bonus applies. Thus a hero with a high Protection bonus doesn’t get much, if any, advantage from wearing a bulletproof vest. The only exception to this is weapons that add to the character’s Strength bonus, and there are limits on them as well (see Melee Weapons, page 137).

Here is the quote from page 137 cited above:

MELEE WEAPONS

Melee weapons work like the Strike power (see page 100) adding the wielder’s Strength bonus to the damage. Ordinary melee weapons are limited by their Toughness in terms of the amount of Strength bonus they can add. If a wielder’s Strength bonus exceeds the weapon’s Toughness (4 for wooden weapons, 7 or 8 for metal weapons), the weapon breaks when it is used.

From what I recall, this represents an exception to PL limits, since your strength conforms to PL limits, this type of sword is not a Device, and anyone can pick up a piece of mundane equipment. If I find anything that confirms/refute this, I'll post an update.

If I'm right, you'll be quite the slicer, since you have +7 to attack, and you'd have a +10 to damage with a +4 sword...

Edit: Looking around, but I can't find any mention of it so far. Might be that my memory invented that big about exceeding PL (or it was wishful thinking), but I'll keep looking for confirmation either way.

That would be nice. I'd probably remove the Computer System in that case, since I don't think we need a super-computer anyway.

Searching through forums, it generally seems to say that equipment is limited just like anything else in the game. Exceptions can be made for things you pick up or improvise, but that even these may cost a Hero Point, as a cost for going over PL temporarily.

The most I could find was a vague reference that said there was an optional rule in Agents of Freedom that GM's might allow Devices and Equipment (both) exceed the campaign PL by 2 in lower level games. However, this was all I could find:

Powers

In a standard Agents of Freedom game, characters have no powers. Any “powers” come from gadgets, usually acquired through the Equipment feat. Gamemasters running Super-Spy games might consider giving these agents the option to reallocate their equipment points (see Mastermind’s Manual, Chapter 5) to reflect that genre’s tendency to give agents a new set of gadgets for each mission. Traditionally, agents have access to technology allowing them to compete at superhuman levels; limiting agents’ access to equipment based on the power level of most Agents of Freedom series is a genre buster. Therefore, Agents of Freedom applies a variant that increases the power level limits for devices and equipment only. This makes the agent genre a somewhat deadlier one than a regular Mutants & Masterminds game, but that fits the genre too, and it enables agents to compete more effectively against super-human foes. The spy genre is known for its outlandish technology, not improbably beyond the realm of current technology, but miniaturized and disguised. With “spy-tech,” guns are built into fountain pens, people’s trench coats turn into short-range aircraft, and rings inject lethal poisons. The Devices and Equipment section of this chapter catalogs these devices in detail.

In the equipment and devices section, this is about all I can find:

Option: Balancing Heavy Weapons

Although Agents of Freedom provides the option for a higher PL limit for devices and equipment, there’s also the matter of how to handle “found” weapons and things like heavy combat equipment that doesn’t feature in every adventure, but comes up from time to time.

Dynamic Balance

One option to help balance the occasion when an agent grabs a bazooka (or what have you) and uses it is dynamic trade-offs. That is, for each point the weapon’s damage bonus is over the agent’s power level limit, reduce the character’s effective attack bonus with that weapon by 1; the weapon is simply too powerful (has too much kick, heft, etc.) and the character isn’t used to it. So an agent using a weapon that’s 2 points over the damage PL limit suffers a –2 on attack rolls with it. This preserves power level balance in a fairly easy-to-use way.

Heavy Weapons

Another option is lighten the power level limit for heavier, less portable weapons. While agents aren’t going to have massive-damage sidearms, they might use tank cannons and emplaced machine guns or blaster-cannons to get the job done. As a basic guideline, an emplaced weapon can exceed power level by 2 points, while a weapon with the Crew Required Flaw can exceed it by 4 points. This allows some flexibility in the power of weapons characters can use without really changing their routine equipment. You can even combine the two options so that really heavy weapons get the extra ceiling, then anything over that imposes an attack roll penalty to balance out the difference.

Edit:

Looks like this tends to confirm the assumption that PL is a Hard Limit, equipment included. While there is the option for the GM to increase the PL for equipment and devices, it seems to me that it only makes sense in an actual spy type game, where pretty much everyone is gadget dependent. In this kind of game, it would place tooth and claw characters at a disadvantage compared to those that use gear, so I don't think it would be wise to include that rule.

Looks like you'll have to balance out your sword with PL limits by reducing either your Strength or Attack. You could drop your strength to keep yourself balanced on Attack/Damage, or keep you damage higher while dropping your attack value, making you more of a 'swing harder, aim later' type of swordsman.

As our party's other sword wielder, I went with a balanced appoach +7/+7, but with both the Power Attack and Accurate Attack feats to allow me to adjust +/-5 in either direction, as the situation demands...

Trying to figure out how to turn my shotgun into a device. It's making my head hurt...

Anybody wanna help a detective out? How exactly does the Device power work?

Detective, tell me what a shotgun means to you and how many points you would like to spend. By what it means to you, I mean what can you do with it. The system is all about effects and descriptions. So what can your character do with this gun?

Hmm, I'm actually not sure. I mean, I don't want it shooting lasers or plasma bolts or something like that. Maybe a quick load chamber for faster reloads during combat. I don't want something that makes me lose the flavor of a normal guy fighting evil. If it helps I've decided to take character inspiration from the hunters in Supernatural.

The basic power is just going to be Blast, but when I think of a shotgun in movies, it can do all sorts of fun things.

1. Area attack (to simulate shot or explosive rounds)
2. Really powerful attack (to simulate slugs)
3. Penetrating attack (to simulate armor piercing)
4. Special Materials (Silver Nitrate or whatever)
5. Knockback (In media, shotguns tend to really kick their targets back)

You probably can't get all of those into one attack, but they could be built as alternate powers or even a variable pool. I don't mind helping out tomorrow on building it.

As for equipment, I believe in this game, where not everyone is playing an agent type character, character equipment should be limited to Power Level. That is not to say that I won't introduce equipment that breaks power level (from a grenade launcher to a magical widget to a nuke, if necessary), but what characters typically have access to is all balanced.

Mmkay, I'd really appreciate any help you can give me. As for points, I can shave some off of my Strength and Constitution, and since I'm giving up my shotgun equipment, I can take some points away from the equipment feat.

Check out "background noise" on the campaign info tab for a quick summary of the state of the world as it might affect you.

For the initial set up, I would prefer if not the entire group knows each other, but some connections seem reasonable. For example, I was thinking that Kishan might be sort of a parole officer for Latimer. Maybe Latimer, John, and Drachman are all in John's building, and Detective Jackson and Wisp know each other. I would like a little element of an origin story here at the beginning rather than a preformed official group.

Those are just thoughts.

We will begin in the middle of a "firefight" with a group of Fomor, who in Dresden and here are sort of Lovecraftian fishmen.

Detective Jarrod Liam Jackson

I love building stuff, so just tell me what you need.

Devices cost 5 times the cost of equipment given that each pp gives you 5 ep to spend. For that reason, cashing in your shotgun isn't going to award much in the way of points to spend. It might work best to keep it as equipment, unless you really want to switch to the device. (Device has a lot of advantages, as it becomes much less restricted by reality or logic, is less susceptible to damage, loss or theft, and so on, but it is a lot more expensive as a result. Depending on your character flavour, I think sticking with an equipment derived gun might be the better option (and if if does get smashed or stolen, you can just get a replacement at any gun store...)

Of course, given how the equipment rules work, tumbler may let you play around with the gear within realistic limits.

For instance, the same as the Sword discussion with Rynjin above, your shotgun could be more powerful than average. (I just finished my Firearms Safety Course (a requirement for a licence here in Canada), so I have Firearm facts coming out the wazoo right now.) One usually assumes that a "typical" full power shotgun is a 12 gauge, as that is the most common type in North America, but more powerful types exist. That shotgun Arnie uses in Terminator 2 is a 10 gauge, and that things got character to spare. Of course break open and pump guns come in that size as well.

Cost would work out to:
10 Gauge: Shotgun +6/+7* 20 Ballistic 50 ft. Large 13 ep
12 Gauge: Shotgun +5/+6* 20 Ballistic 40 ft. Large 11 ep

• Shotgun: A shotgun can fire shot, which does +5 damage with a +2 bonus to hit due to the spread, but it does only +3 damage against targets with any increase in their natural Toughness save bonus. It can also load solid slugs, which inflict +6 damage.

Suppressor is available for 1 ep, as is a laser sight (+1 to attack).

I would also ask if tumbler would allow you to use other specialty ammunition, similar to Alternate Powers of a Device, and similarly for one point, since there are a lot of specialty types that are available in real life.

This one is already in the book:

• Stun Ammo: Ballistic weapons can fire rubber bullets while bows can fire blunt-tipped arrows or quarrels. This ammunition is intended to inflict nonlethal rather than lethal damage. Switching between ammo types is a move action (or a free action for a character with the Quick Draw feat).

You'll also note it sets precedent that switching ammo (and therefore reloading) can be done as a free action with the Quickdraw feat, which you already have.

Here's some other types of real specialty ammo types I can think of, and how I think they'd work:

Sabotted Bullet/Rifled Slug: +6 Ballistic 250ft (Increased Range 2) 1 ep
Armour Piercing +4 Ballistic 50 ft (Penetrating) 1ep
Rock Salt: Stun 4 (Ranged) Ballistic 40 ft 1 ep
Dragon's Breath: +4 20 Fire 5ft by 40 ft line. (Area attack: Line) 1 ep
Flare: Dazzle: Vision 4 Fire 40ft 1 ep
Bear-Banger Dazzle: Hearing 7 Sonic 70 ft 1ep
Mini-Grenade +6 Explosive 50ft range 5ft radius (Area: Burst 1) 1ep
Mini-Smoke Obscure Vision 4 Smoke 50 ft (Area: Burst 20 ft; Independent) 1 ep
Sticky Foam Paralyze 7 (Alternate Save: Fort; Limited to Slow; Limited Range 2: 2 Increments Max) 1 ep

As far as reloading goes, M&M doesn't really bother with it. Since powers don't need reloading, the game generally assumes weapons don't either. Basically, you can kind of assume you have the rapid-reload feat for free, since ammo never really runs out (except as an occasional Complication). Here's how they describe it:

UNDER THE HOOD: UNRELIABLE EFFECTS AND AMMO

One application of the Unreliable flaw is to reflect Devices or other effects that occasionally run out of ammunition or “jam” and must be reloaded or reset in some way. It really only applies to effects where this happens fairly often, as given in the Unreliable flaw description. Large ammo or fuel capacities, which only occasionally run out or inconvenience the character, are better handled as descriptors and occasionally as complications when they actually prove problematic. Example: A gun-toting vigilante has a variety of guns (acquired via the Equipment feat). Generally, the character has sufficient ammunition that it isn’t a concern, no matter how many shots he fires or how many thugs he guns down. When, during a long fire-fight, the Gamemaster decides that the vigilante’s guns click on empty, the player gets a hero point for the setback, forcing the vigilante to come up with a new plan.

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Those shotgun options also work. My only concern is that the detective feel interesting, be able to go toe to toe with the bogedies, and have more to do than "I shoot it." I've made that mistake with characters I played before. Sometimes variety is nice.

Never realized before that Equipment was based on the same Powers. Making those specialty shotgun shells was fun. Of course, now I want one...

(Don't worry Detective Jackson, Lakshmi is not the shotgun type.)

Makes me wonder what other kinds of real-world inspired gear could be manufactured for the game's equipment market...

Aaron, doing some research and note that there were two Denarians in Iran fighting Sanya. Well, there are three figures, so maybe one is you, one Sanya.

As for equipment, I believe in this game, where not everyone is playing an agent type character, character equipment should be limited to Power Level. That is not to say that I won't introduce equipment that breaks power level (from a grenade launcher to a magical widget to a nuke, if necessary), but what characters typically have access to is all balanced.

Is that a yes or a no on a slightly more powerful sword? No skin off my nose either way. If I were able to spend more points on it I'd probably make it out of some special material so that it has a Piercing effect, probably more useful than just a slight base damage bump.

Or should I try and reallocate some points to make it a Device instead?

Was thinking of dropping a few skill ranks (Knowledges Art and Business for Profession: Bookstore Owner/Curator since I think that amounts to the same thing, and Ride entirely) and a few Feats )one rank of Skill Mastery, and maybe Fearless or Second Chance so I'd have some extra points anyway.

Eh, that's probably better. Removes the worry of getting my weapon stolen or destroyed, and allows for some extra effects. Plus it gives me a decent stand-in for a Sword.

Reward from a grateful person in need, or payment for services rendered?

Aaron, doing some research and note that there were two Denarians in Iran fighting Sanya. Well, there are three figures, so maybe one is you, one Sanya.

Well, he was fighting Magog and Shaggy Feathers, but I figured it changed little if two more characters were inserted into that minor scene, considering it doesn't really interfere with much regardless.

That is a your sword attack needs to conform to PL limits, so attack and damage need to equal no more than 14.

Going to do a party breakdown, if you'll so indulge me...

Warden Kishan - Wizard. Warden. Educated. Erudite. Vet of the war with the Red Court.
Odd John - Odd. Named John. Fey. Eclectic. Healer.
Latimer Warren - Tinker. Gizmoteer. Magical ex-con. Ordinary. Out of his depth?
Detective Jarrod Liam Jackson - Ex-cop. P.I.. Knew Karen Murphy. Ex-skeptic. Lost his family. Victim of the Red Court. Carries a big gun.
Aaron Drachmen - Aspirant. Swordsman. Lost-soul. Searching for mother. Anti-Denarian.

Feel free to add in more words, or change ones that don't actually fit.

That is a your sword attack needs to conform to PL limits, so attack and damage need to equal no more than 14.

If that's the case I may need to retool some things. My high Strength seems to be holding me back more than helping. I think I may drop it to 16-18 and get ranks in Super-Strength instead so I can still do heavy lifting and whatnot but the damage limits aren't making using a sword basically impossible, or just kinda weird (I do the same amount of damage with a knife or my fists as with a sword or something).

I think I'd need like...1 rank of Super-Strength to get the same amount of lifting capacity as 22 Str with only 16, saving me 4 points there, and granting me Shockwave or something as well.

Okay, I bought Device 2. Sword (as yet unnamed) for your consideration:

Basic sword stats using my 5 Equipment points (Damage 4, 19-20 crit).

Device abilities: Penetrating 5, Nullify 5 (The Rank 2 variant that nullifies all powers of a certain descriptor, but the Touch range Flaw lowering the cost back to 1 per rank).

Basically, it's a sword designed to cut the uncuttable, supernatural protections on being and enchantments themselves. May buy the Affects Insubstantial Power Feat as well.

Going to do a party breakdown, if you'll so indulge me...

Warden Kishan - Wizard. Warden. Educated. Erudite. Vet of the war with the Red Court.
Odd John - Odd. Named John. Fey. Eclectic. Healer.
Latimer Warren - Tinker. Gizmoteer. Magical ex-con. Ordinary. Out of his depth?
Detective Jarrod Liam Jackson - Ex-cop. P.I.. Knew Karen Murphy. Ex-skeptic. Lost his family. Victim of the Red Court. Carries a big gun.
Aaron Drachmen - Aspirant. Swordsman. Lost-soul. Searching for mother. Anti-Denarian.

Feel free to add in more words, or change ones that don't actually fit.

Latimer is 100% out of his depth. In the 5-Man band, he's definitely The Smart Guy, and Weak, But Skilled is in full effect. Hopefully, between Artificer, Ritualist, and Inventor, he can aspire to Crazy Prepared, as well.

Is the security system magical?

I envisioned the place as an ordinary building, with just a good, standard security system, nothing magical.

Initial setup is fine however you want to set it up. The initial idea of having a shared building for 2 businesses kind of expanded when I realized how much living space there was in a base. Having some characters familiar with others and meeting still others sounds more interesting, even without the firefight.

As a thought, if not everyone wants to be living above the stores, would it be interesting if we had other tenants (whether gifted or not) who could be story hooks or otherwise complicate our lives?

Base contributions:
-Toughness +5 (steel reinforced concrete)
-Library (Is the bookstore area)
-Power System
-Fire prevention system
-Computer system

Sounds fine, though I think you dropped the computer system (which sounded a bit over tech anyway). We can still just have a computer or 2 in the building, but not running security or anything.

Library as book store works really well, though I would think your rarer books would not be shown openly or for sale. Is there a theme to your store? Occult, rare, used, collectibles, etc?

Power system should be sufficient as a back-up system for a standard commercial hook-up, I don’t see us pulling so much power to be suspicious or expensive and having a complete off-the-grid system could look odd (heh, heh)

Fire prevention fits the theme and is something required in commercial buildings anyway.

In regards to your Device. I see you have R2 (easy to lose) at 6 pts. with Penetrating 5, Nullify 5.

Did tumbler say yes to adding device powers on top of what equipment can already do? I was not reading that discussion because it is his decision.
If so, Masterwork is a feature for equipment and would seem appropriate for your sword.

Are the 2 powers Linked (a 0 modifier) or can they be used separately?
That works easily, but another option is to make them alternates.
Go old school Excalibur style, with the blade doing penetrating damage, but the scabbard doing nullify (or drain, for a more expensive but less all-or-nothing effect).

Possible sword names (from Wiki)

Terry Brooks: The Sword of Shannara
• The Sword of Leah: A sword carried by the Leah family for generations, later given the ability to cut through magic.

Slayers
• Sword of Light: Wielded by Gourry Gabriev. The metal blade could be removed from the hilt, allowing Gourry to summon a blade of coherent magical energy that could affect creatures immune to normal weapons or to most magic. The energy blade could also serve as a spell focus, and was used as such by Lina Inverse. In the anime, it was one of the five Dark Star weapons and also given the name "Gorun Nova."

(I kind of like the idea of a bookstore owner carrying a fictional sword.)

Odd John - Odd. Named John. Fey. Eclectic. Healer.

I'd go more with Fey-tortured rather than just fey.

I won't be on-line much this weekend, I have family in town.
I can probably catch up on sunday night

I think I'd rather go for the alternate ammo idea, if tumbler allows it. I think it would fit in better with the character concept. I'll switch a few points around for more equipment points. Am thinking about going for the 10 gauge shotty rather than 12.

Oh, for the bookstore, I do have a pickup truck for hauling things around.

Bigger shotgun and alternate ammo are fine. You are currently on the police force, right? So you should have a Benefit: Law Enforcement powers.

I'll look at changing stuff when I get on my laptop. Decided to be a private investigator, will change my stats to reflect that, though I wouldn't mind having contact's in the BPD

@Cornelius:

Power System is already a backup generator, it lasts for a few hours and then fails. Store is mostly fantasy fiction, myth/religion, and uninitiated occult texts, though he'll sell anything he gets his hands on. He does have a secret inventory available for more magical sorts.

On the sword, I thought by default they were separate powers, since Nullify takes a Standard of its own? Penetrating just modifies the damage.

Name: was thinking something like Unraveler, or a fancier (perhaps Latin or Egyptian) equivalent.

The sword effect you describe is very similar to the set up I have on mine (feel free to have a look). If two powers are linked you can use them both together as a single standard action, the down side being that you cannot use them separately.

I have that set-up on my sword because being unable to unravel magical protection is something Warden swords are specifically set up to do. Now, it is not my only schtick by any means, so I'm not going to get too territorial about it, and the idea is not an uncommon one in fantasy literature, that a magic sword might be supreme at cutting through magic that seeks to protect the target. My one comment would be is that if he has a magical sword of somesort, there should be a story to how he got it or made it, so it is not just an eerily convenient contrivance.

If you're looking for the name of a sword, a good Dresden Files inspiration would be to pick a sword from real mythology. All three swords of the cross are based on real swords of Legend; either by having one of the nails attached to a pre-existing magic sword, or it possibly because the nail was the source of the sword's power all along.

While it has never been specifically confirmed, it has been confirmed in all but name that the swords are:

Amoracchius = Excalibur
Fidelacchius = Kusinagi
Esperacchius = Durendal

A cool element to your story might be to take another "real" sword of legend, and explain how it passed out of history and somehow ended up in Aaron's hands...

There are of course no shortage of real tales of magic swords in history. Here's a few examples.

Gram; also called Balmung, or Nothing. This sword might be very fitting to your story, being the very sword Sigurd used to slay the dragon Fafnir. All the king's men were slaughtered by the dragon when they went to face it, since their weapons all bounced off the impenetrable skin of the dragon. Gram sliced through it easily, enabling Sigurd to win single handedly where an entire army had previously failed. Given the era of the tale, it would most likely have been a Viking Style Sword. Sounds pretty perfect.

However, if that one doesn't grab you, here are some others...

Tyrfing - Another viking sword from Norse legends with a golden hilt that would never miss a stroke, would never rust and would cut through stone and iron as easily as through clothes.

Dáinsleif, another viking blade, which "must cause a man's death every time it is bared, nor ever fails in its stroke; moreover, the wound heals not if one be scratched." Not as famous as Tyrfing.

The Eight Immortals sword of Lü Dongbin. It was a sword said to be able to chase off evil spirits and do wonders. Based on the period, it was probably a single edged, two handed Dao style blade.

Gram sounds perfect, I'll write something up when I'm at my computer again. Dainsleif would fit if I'd taken Incurable like I was considering.

As a bonus, if you use the name "Nothing", then you're all set anytime we run into something that nothing can harm...

BBEG: "I cannot be harmed. First I am going to kill you, and then I will kill every one of your pathetic friends, and nothing can save you!"

Aaron: "It's funny you should say that...

I'm not seeing a lot of complications on anyone's sheets. I can pull some out of your various histories, but you definitely want to have some. Hero Points are the bomb.

Let's collect them in replies to this post and build a list, then I will compile them all and post them on the campaign info.

Sounds good. I have some in mind, just hadn't had an opportunity to jot them down as of yet.

Mmkay, upgraded my shotgun to a 10-gauge and bought some specialty ammo. Got 2ep left, and I'm willing to donate them to the bookstore/hideout. Use them for...whatever. Still reading up on the rules and stuff, but I think I'm slowly getting things figured out.

On to complications: What exactly would be appropriate? Like I said, still trying to get things figured out.

Edit: Found complications in the rulebook. I think the Temper and Hatred would work for me. Hatred against vampires (especially any Red Court that may still be around), and Temper for those who keep asking about his past that he's trying to leave behind. A couple innocent queries won't bother him, but constant pestering for answers will set him off.