Hey, sorry for the extended absence. I'm going to try and get back into my games and get caught up. Can anyone summarize what I missed? Basically everything after the job where we took out the gang leaders, after we stole their weapon's shipment.
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"We had a spare on the shelf, but it was the wrong model for this vehicle. I've taken it to the auto parts depot to exchange it for the correct one. In the meantime, I brought the degreaser and the valve sealant. I should be back with the part shortly; the clerk is in the back of the store fetching it now." Listening to Sentry and Fortune talk, "Ah, so you are a Legacy being are you? I look forward to hearing more about you."
Rashomon pushes past the newcomer and the group of welcomers with a mobile toolbox, as usual, dressed in mechanic's coveralls, which are in turn, covered with engine grease. He offers the stranger a quick informal bow by way of a nod of the head, ""I am Rashomon, pleased to make your acquaintance" Rashomon is a small statured asian man, a hair over five feet tall, and looks closer to 60 than the prime age you'd expect of most heroes.
Rashomon is more of a support and utility character. He can do a lot for the group, but his power is also a big weakness. Knocking out any.one of his locations knocks them all out. And being in four places means enemies have four times as many chances to shoot at me. Given that he's not a frontliner, I could see dropping his Toughness. But on the other hand, there being four of him means he can draw a lot of fire, meaning his role might be to distract heat from the offensive characters. The big disadvantage of Regenerstion is that it says in the description that if rendered unconscious by injury, you remain unconscious for an hour, even though you'd likely be fully healed within 30 seconds. If it wasn't for that, I might consider regeneration, but as it is, he draws a lot of fire, and can't afford to get knocked out of the whole fight that easy.
I prefer to allow people to post anytime as well. Waiting for your turn tends to cause big delays.
Rashomon takes aim at one of the fleeing gang members, and squeezes of a single, well aimed shot. Configured to a non-lethal energy pulse, hopefully it will only render the man unconscious.
We could also rearrange things a bit in terms of points. I could give Rashomon a super fast regeneration to signify his 'Physical Continuity' power, instead of having toughness. If VeeSix did something similar, we could have more normalish Toughness, and make the weapons a little more consistent in damage.
Looking out the back of the van, Rashomon swivels the machine gun blaster into position, and lets loose a burst of fire, strafing the ground right along the view of the gang members. The message should be pretty clear, drop your weapons and surrender.
No problem. You're forgetting how toughness is calculated. Toughness is 2 plus half your Vigor, plus Armor (use the Armor worn on his torso - see page 69). Vigor over d12 is calculated just like Parry, above. So, the question is if we were the only ones that didn't add up, does that mean everyone else forgot the 2+1/2 Vigor rule?
"I don't imagine we'd need all the crates. A few to show we have the goods should do."
"Valid point. We could let them see the machine gun mounted in the van? Its source should be obvious, as well as providing a degree of discouragement as far as an ambush is concerned. But, it would expose the position to a hard-target attack. I have no idea if they have access to rocket launchers, but if they have body armour and machine guns, I wouldn't want to rule it out. To bad we don't have access to a force field user, or an illusionist. I mean, I could probably rig up something that could do that, and Fortune might have a card for that, but neither option seems to last all that long. A force field generator would probably only give us 30 seconds or so of protection, and we'd have no reliable way of knowing when the attack was coming."
"Yes, best not to have the goods with us at all. We might as well send them on to Meros as ordered. We can keep the crates, and fill them with scrap iron or what have you. There is no point is risking them falling back into the gang's hands if they manage to outmaneuver us or just get lucky." "Before the meeting, we should arrange some time to gauge our relative shooting ability. We've been granted the use of one machine-gun, and it would probably make sense tactically to know our various capabilities at various ranges."
Rashomon completes fabricating a tripod mount for the machine gun, and makes sure it is secured into the van. He makes sure it has a quick detach ability, in case someone strong enough to do so needs to pull it off and use it in the handheld configuration.
I think Rashomon may actually used called shots, since marksmanship is his best offensive ability. I'll make sure to announce them when I do. They'll probably be the traditional ones though, aiming for an unarmoured area, the head, or the weapon, etc.
I'm easy too. I've no trouble with gore or what have you either; go nuts. When it comes to a hit or a miss, if it is below the basic target number, I usually describe it as a miss, but if it could have hit, except for some value of the target (speed, parry, dodge skill or power), then I will describe it in active terms of the target parrying, blocking, dodging or juking in an unpredictable enough pattern to make the shot go wide. Obviously if the shot misses to to cover, I describe it hitting the cover. Always rolling all explosions is good as a blanket policy, as is removes the angle of people potentially playing with their values (I don't need a raise on this roll, so I'm keep these explosions for the damage kind of situations). Not saying anyone would do that, but having a blanket policy makes it easier to avoid temptation or suspicion. As for making the gang members well equipped, sure, whatever keeps in challenging. If they are getting machine guns and blasters, body armour is not all that surprising.
No counter-suggestions? Going once, going twice...
"To those of you going out scouting, let me know if you'd like my company. Having me along side means instant access to backup via my portals, and I am also able to communicate with the rest of the team without breaking silence." Unless he has an invitation, he'll continue his work and finish up his inspection of the weapons.
Rashomon looks disappointed, and gives the pile of weapons a mournful, longing look, "Well, that is disappointing. He is correct of course, that from a purely logistical viewpoint, the weapons will accomplish more in the hands of plain humans. We would have been able to put them to good use as well, of course. I still think that arming Angel with one of the machineguns could have some very significant applications. I am proficient as well, but I think I'd need a tripod to use it properly. When we construct the machinegun mount, I will ensure it is a quick release type, so that if we need to put it in the hands of one our shooters quickly, we can do so. We can have it on standby, so Fortune Brav0 or I can teleport it into position when needed." Looking about the room as if talking to a listener he adds, "And of course, I'm sure there would be no issue with retaining weapons we capture in combat. I for one would like to upgrade my blaster."
"These weapons are unfortunately very common these days," he eyed the machineguns regretfully, knowing that he lacked the strength to use it effectively. "Unfortunate there are no rifles or submachine guns. These machine-guns will be of limited use. I could build a mount for the van, and they would probably prove useful for defense of this building, but they are too unwieldly for a man of my size to use effectively. Angel might have the strength and expertise to use one as intended. They can be set to less than-lethal output, and having that volume of fire available could be advantageous." Rashomon next grabs some equipment from his lab, and scans the crates and weapons for any tracking devices, just to be safe.
Rashomon will be thorough, checking over the crates, contents, and equipment. Once completed, he moves to the pile of weapons, and starts breaking down the blasters into their component parts. Another Rashomon brings over a laptop and pulls up the schematics of the various parts, going over them in detail as the other Rashomon strips the guns. He looks specifically for anything that deviates from the usual plans. "I plan to thoroughly examine these devices before any of us use them. I doubt the people shipping them would have any reason to suspect they'd come to us, but when dealing with illicit weapons, you never know what might be involved. With firearms, the examination is pretty simple. If all the mechanical parts are there and it functions, add a bullet and it will go 'bang.' With a blaster, it is more complicated. They could be programed to overload at random intervals, booby trapped, or rigged with remote deactivation or overload functions, in case the gangster don't do as they're told. This may take a little while, but I intend to have them safe for use." "If anyone else has experience with blasters or coding, a second set of eyes is always appreciated."
Rashomon will start cracking open some of the crates and checking the weapons. He'll check each item to make sure it appears functional, but rendered safe for storage. Each one he takes from the box, hands it to another Rashomon, who places it in a pile for testing.
"Should we continue looking around, or all return to base?" "Another option would be to disable the weapons, and place tracking devices in them or the crates, in order to keep an eye on the distribution network. Taking them gets them off the street, and they could even be useful to us to use ourselves. Just noting options."
Rashomon opens a portal on one of the internal walls of the cargo container. He nods at V6 and Angel, as the team's folk with super strength, silently asking them to move the crates through the portal, and into our HQ.
Rashomon, having always had a talent for languages, had made an intentional effort to learn their language. Having already learned Atlantean decades prior, he had always found I curious that V'sori had a remarkable level of overlap in grammatical construction, and it was obvious, to him at least, that one was either an offshoot of the other, or that both had a common ancestor. That being said, he starts softly reading some of the labels to his team mates.
That's what I was figuring. Rashomon has Super Science to accomplish the same sorts of things, but it's best to save bennies if they're not needed.
Rashomon moves from the computer desk at HQ to the shop, grabs a grease gun, and makes sure it's full. The Rashomon at the cargo container, having the same possessions, then brings it to bear, and starts giving every contact point on the doors and their security bars an overly generous dollop of grease.
Rashomon will go with both groups (3/3), as well as having a third location back at the base, monitoring to coms, and keeping track of weather, commercial traffic bandwidths, and coast guard activity.
ALL - I'm envisioning a ship full of large metal cargo crates (like you see in the TV shows), with some stacked upon others. No one's said how you're going to recognize the crate with the gang's shipment in it yet...
The Rashomon at the base speaks over the earpieces, so no one on the ship has to speak aloud, "Start checking the inventory numbers, see if you can see a pattern to how the cargo containers were loaded. I would imagine they'd be loaded in a particular order to make unloading make more sense to the longshoremen. If there is no obvious pattern to how they're loaded, we may have to find the cargo manifest, or ask a crew member. Keep in mind, crew aboard the ship may or may not be criminally involved.
Rashomon opens a portal, trying to make his calculations just right, aiming it between a few of the cargo containers secured on the deck. Rashomon looks about, scanning for any obvious witnesses, and then if clear, steps, hops, or drops through, depending on where the portal is relative to the ship.
ZenFox - a polite counterpoint:
Actually, that is exactly what I was pointing out. It was definitely my character that was ruining the curve. My point however, was that if the extra artificial caps you instituted had not existed, then other characters would have been just as powerful, and the disparity would not have existed. The overall power level of the group would have been higher, but that is easier to cope with than a varied level of ability within the group. I feel the disparity was caused by the changes to the rules, and not due to merely not thinking of every eventuality. This is essentially just a rehash of the same discussion we had back in the day, and my opinion is unchanged, though I can respect yours as well. From my point of view, the rules have been playtested, and the easiest way to have a balanced group is to not introduce extra rules trying to limit certain powers. When you do, you have a greater chance of creating accidental imbalances, because there will always be holes and neglected powers that weren't caught in the web of new rules. If an obvious or unintended exploit comes to light that was clearly not the way the rules were intended to work, or is severely affecting the game, you adjust it when it comes up, not before, due to the law of unintended consequences as outlined above. I know you feel differently, and this is your game, so you get to make the rules. However, I will continue to point it out when I feel an adjustment is likely to cause more problems than it solves, or when it curbs or eliminates what appears to be an intended use of a power. I would argue that this does not explicilty say that portals are two-way. It merely talks about what someone on the entry side of the portal can do to someone on the exit side. I believe the comment about Gang-Up was that someone attacking from the entry side doesn't count towards Gang-Up on the target on the exit side. This sounds like you're agreeing with me, but stating it in a way that sounds like you are disagreeing? Here's what I wrote: While it does not explicitly state the portals are two-way, I think it is clearly implied. The part to me that strongly implies that the portals are two way is the idea of passing items. It doesn't say the item can only be passed in one direction, and presumably, even if the item could only go from entry portal to exit portal, I can reach across, give you something or retrieve it, and then bring my hand back through the portal to where the rest of me is standing. So, while it does not say portals go two ways, it is the most obvious reading of the passage, thus it is implied. When it comes to the Gang Up bonus, I actually read it as not being able to get a gang up bonus on an individual by yourself. I was picturing a person fighting in melee, opening a portal beside themselves that exited behind their opponent. Therefore, because of the portal, I am both in front and behind my opponent. I can see a player arguing they should get the gang up bonus in that situation, and the rules saying, no, you both have multiple angles of attack on each other, so it doesn't count. At the end of the day, it is your game, and your rules, and I'll always respect that. However, as long as you are open to feedback when trying to implement those rules, I'll try to advocate for the lightest possible touch.
ZenFox: I think the "portals are clear and two-way" rules are needed for fair gameplay. Further exceptions can be handled quickly if they come up. Being able to shoot through portals is actually listed in the description for portals, so wasn't really ever in question. Making the portals black would have been an overt change to the rules. The hero can open an entry and exit portal within her teleport Range, allowing anyone adjacent to the entry portal to act as if adjacent to the exit portal. This allows them to make melee attacks, angle ranged attacks from different directions, pass items, etc. It does not grant a Gang Up bonus for melee attacks, however. While it does not explicitly state the portals are two-way, I think it is clearly implied.
I've no issue with either point here. As Hellion suggested, I think using a water or magma spout and such should be theoretically possible, but as suggested, if probably more suitable to a power stunt than as a routine use of the power. I think portals are powerful enough without being able to drive a vehicle thru them. Their advantage is they give you quick access to get to a far-away place, but from then on, you're on foot. Agreed, as far as the default power is concerned, but I think it should be available as a potential future upgrade. LARGE (+1) Teleporters capable of making portals can create larger portals, allowing a larger number of individuals, larger creatures, or vehicles to move through. By default, the Teleporter may create portals 2" (4 yards) in diameter. Each level of the Large modifier allows them to increase the maximum size by a factor of 1. (So at 1 level of LARGE, the portal would have x2 the diameter; at level 2 it would have 3x the diameter, etc.) Regarding enemies, portals are different than teleportation, as you noted. You could create a horizontal portal underneath someone's feet, and put the exit 12" straight up, doing 6d6+6 damage when they hit. Now, you can do that with teleport, but with a portal, like in some cartoons, he could just continue to fall thru the portal again, picking up speed each cycle, until the portal runs... It would be easier to link Teleport other and Traverse, and portal them a mile up, or into outer space. 10d6 is not that much more damage than 6d6+6, and would require him to use multiple turns to use that strategy. I think this is a non-issue, and not a potential abuse, but an intended possible use of the power. I think a switch to Reflexes is reasonable, and likely an advantage to the foe, as Reflexes is often higher than Spirit. I don't think any other changes are warranted.
Regarding getting around the -4, the -4 is not really an issue, and with a portal, especially outside of combat, is no big deal. If it opens in the wrong spot, or fails to open, he just tries again, so getting around it affects nothing. To put it another way, if he teleported to the coordinates, and found that his target was off a bit, he'd end up in the water, look around, see if he could see the boat, and then teleport to it. With portals, he doesn't have to step through, so the process is the same, but without getting wet, that is all I was saying.
Solid points from Helion. I agree, and I don't like getting bogged down in rule disputes. I also don't like making blanket rules for situations that haven't come up yet. This is a discussion I've had with ZenFox before, and our opinions differ. I believe we should play with the rules as written, until a problem or game disrupting issue is discovered. ZenFox prefers to look ahead, and head off what he sees as potential abuses before they happen. I feel that paints with an overly wide brush, and causes more issues than it fixed, which I think was demonstrated in our early game, in which the power levels of various characters were really disparate.
That sounds reasonable. -I'd say as opposed to only atmosphere, perhaps make it areas of roughly equal pressure? Almost as if the friction on reality is higher on one side that the other, the portal gets snagged as it tries to open, but from underwater to another area of approximately equal depth would work, as would portalling from one part of the moon to another part of the surface of the moon. This could possibly be overcome in some circumstances by a minus (aka -1 for every unit of atmospheric pressure - 10 atmospheres, or 100m below the surface would be a -10 in this example)
Only other question I would have would be what are the limits on size? Is the max the size of a doorway, or could he make one big enough to drive the van through? How about an airplane? How about a whole cargo ship? (asking for a friend)
Every point beyond d12 increases the skill by +1. It might be better cost-wise to use the portal option, as you don't then have to worry about the number of people. Don't know why I didn't think of you as a back up teleporter. That is a much better option.
Looking around the base, Rashomon thinks aloud over the coms, "We should consider building a reception room, with extra defenses, to teleport to and from. That way if anyone finds a way to follow us back, they are not already inside our base."
"Layouts for commercial vessels are usually available on the manufacturers websites. It won't show modifications or retrofitting, but for the basic layout, bridge, crew quarters, engine rooms and such, they should be accurate."
"Easily, as long as I am conscious. I may be able to rig up an exit device that could be used in case of an emergency; transporting the team back to a predetermined location. Probably somewhere near the warehouse, but no in it, just in case it fell into the wrong hands. I could rig it to be useable only for a short window of time as well, so it would deactivate if lost."
"Ships are all GPS located these days. If we wanted, we could investigate the vessel at sea. We'd have the same issues regarding stealth and such, but getting too and from would be no issue with a well placed portal."
Also presently back at the base, Rashomon logs into the local systems, and starts trying to cross reference vessels coming into port in the time frame the gang appears to be expecting their shipment. He'll hack in if necessary to get the crew manifests of ships in right time frame, as well as longshoremen at the relevant docks, and cross reference those with known associates of the Black Vipers gang (He'll write an algorithm that scans the records for anyone sharing a surname, marriage record, common address, common employer, common cell block, or arrested on the same day and location as any known Black Viper members).
He then shares any information gained with the rest of the team over the radios.
You can assume he spoke his ideas out loud to the group. I forgot how short lived the superscience devices are; useful in combat or single interactions, not so much outside of them. Given the restriction, he could probably come up with a time-compression device of some sort, using the equivalent of super speed to search the whole site within the few rounds allowed. It would probably not be subtle, but he'd be long gone by the time they tried to do something about it.
I am fine with 2 or more. If we wait all the time, it will bog things down a lot. 3 of five is arguably quorum, but I'm fine with whichever.
"This is not my area of expertise. I will accede to those with better knowledge of this sort of thing. I do not necessarily have a preference, but what is to be our stance on the rule of law? Unreasonable search and seizure, and so on?"
"Perhaps I can do some exploration. I am reasonably unobtrusive. If I am discovered, I am very difficult to injure, and would likely be safe, unless they attempt to use lethal force and discover it does not work. If they assault an old man, we could then have just cause to use concussive behaviour modification."
Rashomon will dress up as a homeless man and escort Fortune. Of course, he will also stay in the company of the other groups, ready to bring them all together via portals if necessary.
That is a good suggestion. |