Date: Tue, 14 Apr 1998 16:47:17 -0400 From: "Chad Underkoffler" To: gurpsnet-files@io.com Subject: 4C GURPS Mechanics 4 Color Mechanics & Rules Options VELOCITY BLOW “Need a little extra oomph to take out that Axis Brick? Well, just back off, build up some speed, and whack that baddie using the combined force of your velocity and your muscles!” -- From the 1944 Justice Squad Training Manual OPTION 1 [Thomas Barnes] Let the super make a Slam attack, using his full ST plus mass and speed. Instead of doing knockback damage, he does *normal* crushing damage to inanimate objects. If the total damage done by the super's attack exceeds the DR and HP of the object, it breaks creating a hole sufficiently large for the super to go through. If he wishes to land on the other side, I'd rule that he'd have to make a DX roll, -1 to -4 for any bad footing caused by the rubble on the floor. Of course, if you want to be really dramatic, the rubble sprays out from the point of impact, doing shrapnel damage equal to 1/10 the amount of damage the wall took, leaving a clear space just beyond the wall where the super can land. This assumes, of course, that the super has Invulnerability to crushing damage or something like it. Otherwise, the super takes 1/2 the amount of damage that he did to the inanimate object, or full damage if he failed to bash through it. I think that there are rules for this someplace in GURPS Supers. Also see the rules for collisions in GURPS Vehicles. OPTION 2 [James Buckingham ] I'd say add the speed/range penalty to their attack roll, then give them, say, 1d6 extra damage per 5 Move, and they should take between ½ and 1/3 damage as well. This is just off the cuff, which is how I prefer to handle 4- color. :) OPTION 3 [Rage] Velocity Enhanced Blow is a All-Out Attack variant spread over at least 2 turns. Must use 1 turn to Move only, no attacks allowed; Dodges allowed, but no Parries or Blocks. VEB happens in next turn., and you get no Active Defense that turn. VEB ST = ST + Move. If VEB ST > HT+ DR, super must make a HT or DX roll or take half-damage from their own attack. EXAMPLE: Ultradude (ST 50, Move 12) decides to try a VEB on Dr. Ickybad. He flies at full speed at the Bad Doctor for a turn, dodging the slime-rays, to connect with a VEB of strength 62. He does mucho damage. Unfortunately, Ultradude's HT + DR (11 + 35 = 46) is less than the VEP ST. Now he has to roll vs. DX or Health to avoid taking half- damage from his mighty blow! OPTION 4 [andi jones ] okay, my suggestion for the "velocity-enhanced punch" is as follows. It incorporates thomas' and chad's ideas, but adds an element which makes it seem more like an outgrowth of the existing slam and super-slam rules. VELOCITY-ENHANCED BLOW the VEB is a variant on the "move" manoeuver, just like a normal slam (p.B112). 1) character declares VEB. like a normal slam, it will occur when the character enters the target's hex. chad suggested making this a two- turn manoeuver, which might work well in some cases. but given the wide variety of methods of getting into your opponent's hex, i don't think it would always be necessary. the flash, for instance, moves fast enough to decide on the VEB, get to his opponent's hex, and deploy all in one turn. spider-man, OTOH, might jump off a ledge intending to plant a VEB on doctor octopus, but it might take him three or four turns to swing the distance. but ultimately, the character has to enter his opponent's hex, so that's when the VEB happens. as for limitations on the super's actions while en-route, that too depends on the super. while spider-man is in mid-swing, i'd agree he can't do much more than dodge (if that). but the flash is wicked fast, and can do more in the same time. enhanced time-sense would affect this, as might other super-powers. this can be a GM's rule, based on the mode and length of transport, powers involved, etc.. if nothing else, on the actual turn in which the VEB is delivered, the character suffers from the drawback of the all-out attack, and cannot use active defences. For this reason, then, the GM should disallow a VEB being done as an all-out attack, i.e. no extra bonuses. 2) when the attacker enters the target's hex, there is a contest of DX to see if the attacking super has timed it right. standard modifiers apply (-2 to opponent's DX if you attack from behind, etc.). in this contest, i would allow the attacker to substitute a suitable skill in place of DX. if the super is flying in, a flying roll might be allowed. for spider-man, a swinging roll. (what the hell skill does he use, anyhow? what skill governs web-slinging and the like?) the flash makes a running roll. batroc the leaper (ha ha) makes an acrobatics roll. you get the idea. 3) if the attacker wins the contest of DX, he then has to make an actual to-hit roll. this "additional" to-hit roll might seem excessive, since the contest of DX is considered the to-hit roll for normal slams. but since the benefits of the VEB are so potentially high, a second to-hit roll seems fair to me. (this attack form has to be sufficiently hard, after all, that it isn't used in every single attack by every flying super, etc..) this second to-hit roll is a manoeuver (in the martial arts sense), detailed here: VELOCITY-ENHANCED BLOW (hard) defaults to: combat skill-5 prerequisite: any combat skill; must specialise cannot exceed prerequisite skill-2 the super rolls vs. his VEB manoeuver, modified by standard combat penalties. if the attack is successful, the target is allowed to use any legal active defence, as usual. if the target fails to defend, the attacker's VEB is successful; damage is equal to the normal damage for the attack in question (karate kick, punch, etc.) plus a bonus of 1d per 5mph of movement at the time of the attack (which is the same as the collision rules). the attacker takes some damage, too, but only the velocity damage. chad's suggestion was that the super take half- damage, but that may be unfair to really strong supers moving not all that fast (who would take too much damage) and really fast supers with low ST (who would take too little). 4) knockback (if applicable) is calculated as normal, 1 hex per 8 points done (before DR, etc.). 5) whether the attacker falls down from the impact, or how much of their velocity is slowed, depends too much on the mode of movement to make hard and fast rules. a guy who flies can't really be knocked down, but a running guy could. and a guy swinging in on a web-line could be knocked off-course. if the GM rules the attacker could fall, a roll vs. appropriate skill (running, acrobatics, web- swinging, straight DX, etc.) should be allowed, with a penalty of maybe -1 for every 5mph of the collision. anyway, that's how i'd play the VEB. it's limited by requiring two attack rolls (and therefore giving the target two chances to defend), which may make up for its potential to be devastating. you'll also need DR to survive a lot of these, if you're moving real fast. but most imporantly, the application of the VEB should be decided by the attitudes, codes of conduct, and morals of the heroes (and villains) in question. given how brutal it is (and looks), maybe the VEB would be considered "foul play" by upstanding heroes. maybe the public wouldn't appreciate their heroes playing "meteor strike" with the bad guys. it might well ruin a super's career to misjudge a bad-guy's toughness, and then kill him with a well-planted right hook at 120mph... GMs could withhold experience points for characters who used a VEB if it's flagrantly out- of-character. Plenty of supers have powers which are "too powerful" to use most of the time. part of playing a true, 4-colour super-hero is holding yourself back and not always using your most devastating attack. in my experience, this is contrary to the approach of many gamers - particularly those of us who grew up on AD&D as youngsters - but that's part of the genre. spider-man is constantly fretting about cutting loose one day and killing someone accidentally... cyclops is always mentioning how deadly his optic-blasts would be if he used them at full power... and yeah, the invulnerable flying karate master with ST 40 who flies at 200mph could be really deadly. But being an effective super-hero means more than being deadly, otherwise they would have run out of superman stories many years ago. SHOCKWAVE “GRONK SMASH!” OPTION 1 [Rage] Super strong bricks can strike the ground for shockwave effects. Generally, bricks use this to knock people over. (Does Knockback Only) Sometimes the shockwave xpands out like a circle, sometimes it moves as a cone or a line. (Enhancements) I'd call the base state an Area effect. You rarely see normal-guy sized bricks doing this. (Possible Limitation: Must have Increased Density, Body of Metal/Stone, or boocoo DR). Since it's not as effective as a punch, and does no real damage to people, say that Shockwave does the square root of ST swinging damage in "knockback only", and effects people in a radius of 1/25 ST hexes. Make a DX-roll (or Body Sense) or fall down. Clinging, flying, insubstantial, and suchlike characters are immune. EXAMPLE 1: Big Bob (ST 100) does a shockwave. Big Bob rolls for swing damage as if his ST were 10. He rolls a 12. Everyone in a 4 hex radius of Big Bob takes 12 points of Knockback. EXAMPLE 2: Bigger Bob (ST 500) does a shockwave. Big Bob rolls for swing damage as if his ST were 22. He rolls a 22. Everyone in a 20 hex radius of Big Bob takes 22 points of Knockback, which is like almost 3 yards. OPTION 2 [tbarnes@iupui.edu ] Treat this as a concussion explosion centered on the Super's hex. Initial damage is based on the super's thrusting damage. People in the area of effect who take "damage" are not really harmed, they must make a roll vs. DX (-1 for every die of damage the shock did, +1 for every 10 points of ST they have) or be knocked off their feet. Buildings and other solidly rooted objects take normal concussion damage. In order to make this attack, a super must have at least 50 ST and one level of the Increased Density advantage. OPTION 3 [4C Posse] It might be modelled by existing Supers Powers. "Shockwave" or "Earthquake" or “Water Cannon” with appropriate Enhancements and Limitations (Knockback Only, Based on ST, Cone, Area Effect, whatever). A FISTFULL OF THROWN WEAPONS “So before I swoop down to kick the holy heck out of those thugs of Captain Terror, I softened them up with a handful of my patented sleep darts!” -- DartBoy OPTION 1 [Rage] Special Effect of multiple attacks- no rule needed. OPTION 2 [Rage] Throwing more items than you have attacks would probably require a penalty, and a manuever can be created to allieviate that minus. For every extra thrown weapon over and above the character's attacks, apply a -4 to that attack. (equiv to off-hand and dual weapon penalties; seems fair) Missed weapons could do Bad Things. EXAMPLE 1: Dart Boy (Throwing-16), with one attack, throws 3 darts at once. Dart #1 vs. 16 Dart #2 vs. 12 Dart #3 vs. 8 EXAMPLE 2: Dart Boy has learned the "Multiple Thrown Weapons" Manuever, which maxes at his Throwing level. It, like Hit Location, can allieviate up to 4 points of penalties. He throws 5 darts this time. Dart #1 vs. 16 Dart #2 vs. 16 Dart #3 vs. 12 Dart #4 vs. 8 Dart #5 vs. 4 OPTION 3 [tbarnes@iupui.edu] I'd call it a maneuver which requires Throwing Art skill as a prerequisite. Throw multiple weapons Hard Throwing Art-6 Prerequisites: Throwing Art, Throwing (or Throwing Shuriken) Cannot be improved past Throwing Art skill Allows you to throw several small, balanced missiles, like shuriken or darts, from one hand in a single motion. A successful roll allows all the missiles to be thrown effectively, though each missile must roll to hit individually. A failed roll means that one or more of the missiles went awry. For every 3 points by which you miss your roll, one of your missiles is an automatic miss or doesn't have sufficient force to do damage. A critical failure means that all the missiles are scattered ineffectively. You may throw up to 4 missiles in this manner. It takes 1 second to ready each missile in your hand, unless you have the skill Fast Draw (Multiple Shuriken) and your missiles are packed in such a way that they can be all be drawn at the same time. OPTION 4 [andi jones ] just a thought off the top of my head: in order to reduce the number of dice rolled, how about treating this like a "burst" from an automatic weapon. you make a single roll against your "throw multiple weapons" manoeuver (taking into account any usual to-hit penalities for range, targetted shots, etc.) and make a roll. and depending on how well you make that roll, some or all missiles hit. that way, it's one roll for all the missiles, but rolling well helps. hit location is rolled randomly, unless the missiles were aimed. (a GM might rule that if any of the missiles are aimed at one location, then all of them have to be aimed at the head. but, that's up the GM and the level of cinematicity in the campaign. one of my players and i often joke about a scene in an old bruce lee movie in which he grabs a handful of wooden spikes and then throws them at a *group* of bad guys, hitting them all in strategic locations, one in the hand, one in the eye, etc..) OPTION 5 ["Bob Huss" ] Also, you could let 'em All-Out Attack for extra attacks. That would also cover the bit about them only seeming to do it while moving. POWER STUNTS “Chloe—falling to her death! But I can’t let the autogyro go to save her! Maybe… Maybe if I inhale very deeply using my super-breath, the suction will slow her fall!” – Ultradude Examples of Power Stunts are: Starfire 'spreading' one of her starbolts to form a disintegration shield vs falling (small) bits of rubble, Firestorm using his Matter Manipulation to create and grow plants, Bishop using his Absorption ability to absorb the kinetic energy of a runaway train, Tempest (ex-Aqualad) using his ability to heat water to recharge Superman's new electrical form, etc. etc. OPTION 1 [Revenant ] If it sounds even vaguely feasible with a heroes powers they can do it... OPTION 2 [Dataweaver ] From the GURPSnet Archive (AdsDisSkills/Supers/pwrmaneuv.txt): Power Maneuver (+0%): the Super Power is actually a "power-stunt" of another power. As such, the two powers cannot be used simultaneously. In addition, this Super Power does not have an associated Super Skill; instead, it is a Hard Maneuver of the primary power (Default = Primary Super Skill - LC of this power, cannot exceed primary super skill). The primary super ability must have a higher LC than this power, and it must have a Skill associated with it. Versatile (+20%): this gives you a +1 to the Default of every Power Maneuver based off of this super skill (note: the Power Maneuver's maximum level is not affected by this Enhancement; if you have Laser-16, the highest level a Laser Maneuver can achieve is still 16, no matter how many levels of Versatility you give the Laser). This Enhancement can be taken multiple times. Power Stunts (optional rule): You may, with GM permission, attempt a Power Maneuver that you have not purchased; to do so, expend a number of character points equal to the power level you are attempting (maximum of the primary power's level); these points are applied toward purchasing that Power Maneuver. Roll against the maneuver at default. Once you have purchased the Power Maneuver, you may expend further character points to increase the Power Level, or to improve the Maneuver beyond its default. If you attempt a Power Maneuver at a level higher than you have purchased it, you spend points as above. OPTION 3 [Eric ] Let's not lose sight of the fact that provisions for this exist in supers already. A super defense (which this sounds like) is at 1/2 skill - - just like any other weapon defense, and you must have instantaneous to be able to use it in time (no prep time). It's at the back of permutations somewhere. AND: [andi jones ] i agree, some of the maneuvers mentioned could be defences. though i'd still say that a super-defence that did something special or unusual (blasting a few hexes worth of falling glass shards, as opposed to simply intercepting a single attack) could still be handled as a manoeuver. HOWEVER: [Revenant ] Yup, but Starfire's Energy Blast normally doesn't have the Area Effect enhancement. And that doesn't cover Bishop's or Tempest's trick. OPTION 4 [andi jones ] i like the sound of that, since it reflects the comics reality, and makes supers' power more flexible than the rules can really cover. but i don't think it would work to make these actual powers, because then they need to be bought at levels, and have their own skill level, which drives up the costs of PCs who might not need these sub-powers frequently enough to pay many points for them. so what about making them maneuvers, which default from the appropriate super skill? starbolt's rubble-blasting defence shield can be a manoeuver from her power missile power, in the same way that a sweep kick is a specialised use of karate. it could look something like this: debris-blasting defence-screen defaults to: attack power-4 prerequisite: appropriate attack power with "instantaneous" or something like that. either the wording would need to be somewhat vague - - to cover different kinds of situations - or there would have to be several similar manouevers to cover those different situations. and as for "appropriate", either that's up the GM, or we make up some guidelines. For instance, in the case of rubble, i'd say someone with a flame jet wouldn't do too much. but, if a villain blows out a store front, i'm more inclined to say that a flame-screen can defend a super and/or some by-standers from flying bits of glass. a suggestion could be made that every 1d of damage the attack normally does, it can absorb 1 hex of debris, or somesuch. i personally think that the maneuvers from martial arts are a brilliant way of adding a layer of complexity to GURPS that, if used, makes the game much more exciting, but if ignored, doesn't leave gaping holes in the combat mechanics. a perfect example of GURPS' modularity. similarly, by handling power-stunts as maneuvers, there is no need to rewrite the existing supers rules, they could be implimented without needing to revise existing supers characters, and new ones could be added as people think them up, etc.. here's one: TELEPORT-PUNCH: nightcrawler often teleports right into someone's hex, throwing his punch as he appears. this could allow a close- quarter attack with some penalty to the target's active defence. this one, like some of the martial arts maneuvers, might require two rolls: one for the teleportation (made normally), and one for the punch (the manoeuver, moderately harder than a usual punch). also, maybe some guidelines could be drafted for supers inventing these maneuvers in the field. the example above of tempest using his heat-water powers to recharge superman's energy form is sufficiently specific that tempest's player might not want to spend points on it. but that's the beauty of maneuvers: you can always just use them at default. so a rule could be made to cover impromptu stunts: the character describes what he/she wants to do, and must explain "how" in supers terms. the GM decides if it's feasible, and assigns a penalty to the existing super-skill to reflect how hard it would be. later, if the stunt becomes handy, the player might choose to put a point or two into it. (but, just as tempest gets good at his super- regenerating water-heating stunt, superman says, "bwah-ha, my old powers and costume are back, fishboy!".) OPTION 5 [Rage] If a character needs to use one of his powers in an unusual or unprecedented way (J’onn J’onnz using his shapeshifting to expand the right hemisphere of his mind to get an insight into how the Joker thinks, for example), the character must make a relevant skill roll at -4 and spend a character point. The character point is lost even if the attempt is unsuccessful. If the action is successful, the character (with GM assistance) may at a later time generate a super-maneuver based on that power stunt. EXAMPLE: Red Dragon has Fire Jet-15. In combat with the Gargoyle, he wants to try and “spread” his Fire Jet to vaporize the rubble that the Gargoyle is hurtling at the crowd below. He spends 1 CP, and rolls against an 11. He is successful, and all that strikes the public below is a fine ash. SUPERS PACKAGES “It’s all in the reflexes.” – Jack Burton OPTION 1 [4C Posse] Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1998 13:40:07 -0500 (EST) From: tbarnes@iupui.edu Subject: Supers Package (was Re: 4 color rules) 4-Color Super Hero Package Advantages: Appearance (Attractive), Fit, Luck, Rapid Healing, Regeneration (Limitation: Crippling Injuries only, -50%), Combat Reflexes, Immunity to Disease (Limitation: "Normal" disease only. -10%), Unfazeable, Costume, Recovery (if Stun damage rules are used), Hard to Kill (5 levels). Common Advantages: Good Reputation, Legal Enforcement Powers Disadvantages: Secret (Super Identity), Sense of Duty (Friends), Sense of Duty (Country), Code of Honor (Super Hero), Enemies (Various Super Villains) Taboo Traits: Any severely antisocial mental disadvantage (like Murder Addiction or Pyromania), Odious Personal Habits. 4-Color Super Villain Package Advantages: Luck, Rapid Healing, Regeneration (Limitation: Crippling Injuries Only), Combat Reflexes, Immunity to Disease (Limitation: "Normal" disease only. -10%), Unfazeable, Costume, Recover (If Stun rules are being used.), Hard to Kill (5 levels), Resurrection Disadvantages: Secret (Super Identity), Unluck, Greedy (Money or Power), Overconfidence, Code of Honor (Super Villain), Obsession (Committing Crimes), Trademark, Callous, Selfish, Destiny (Never succeed with any plan to take over the world), Enemy (Super Heroes and various Law Enforcement Agencies). Thomas Barnes Date: Thu, 09 Apr 1998 12:03:02 -0700 From: Lizard Subject: Re: Supers Package (was Re: 4 color rules) One addendum -- the 'special effect' of the Regeneration ought to be 'doesn't actually take crippling damage, it just looks that way'. IOW, Dr. Armageddon shoots his laser beam at Captain Cosmos. The good Captain goes down, his arm virtually severed. Regen kicks in. Some time later, "It's ok. The beam missed most of the major blood vessels. I'm just a bit sore, that's all." Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1998 14:45:10 -0500 (EST) From: tbarnes@iupui.edu Subject: Re: Supers Package (was Re: 4 color rules) > One addendum -- the 'special effect' of the Regeneration ought to be 'doesn't actually take crippling damage, it just looks that way'.< Yes. > IOW, Dr. Armageddon shoots his laser beam at Captain Cosmos. The good Captain goes down, his arm virtually severed. Regen kicks in. Some time later, "It's ok. The beam missed most of the major blood vessels. I'm just a bit sore, that's all." < Actually, I almost put in the Damage Immunity (Doesn't Bleed) advantage, because though supers can get "cosmetic" cuts, they never seem to have serious blood loss. All right, Batman gets shot/hacked up, etc. and "gets weak" due to "blood loss", but you never see him dripping major amounts of blood, and it never seems to seriously impair his ability to escape or save himself. Likewise, a case for Damage Immunity (No Vitals) could be made on the same grounds. Thomas Barnes Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1998 12:53:40 -0800 From: "Bob Huss" Subject: Re: Supers Package (was Re: 4 color rules) On 9 Apr 98 at 13:40, tbarnes@iupui.edu wrote: > > 4-Color Super Hero Package > > Advantages: Appearance (Attractive), Fit, Luck, Rapid Healing, Regeneration (Limitation: Crippling Injuries only, -50%), Speaking seriously: I think a variation of the Flesh Wounds rule (spend 1 cp & all your wounds were "merely flesh wounds" & you've got full HT) is sufficient for handling Crippling Injuries. Spend 1 cp (and have the GM's approval) & permanent becomes lasting, lasting becomes temporary. Combined with Rapid Healing, which adds +5 to your HT roll to avoid the crippling injury in the first place, and Luck to reroll when an 18 comes up, that should be sufficient. And it's cheaper, too. > Combat Reflexes, > Immunity to Disease (Limitation: "Normal" disease only. -10%), Unfazeable, Not really Unfazeable -- heroes do get upset (see Aquaman, Spiderman, etc.). Strong Will, definitely. Couple of levels in most cases. Maybe a new advantage -- something like "Determined: you never give up hope" or the like, to cover those situations where Galactus is prepping to eat the earth, the Legions of Hell are rampaging through downtown, and Doomsday is looking for our Hero, but Hero doesn't give up. Better idea: Destiny (May get knocked down, but *will* get up again). ;-) Really, this is probably just a genre convention. There aren't any rules about when to call for Fright Checks -- it's a GM call. So, if the GM just avoids calling for 'em, Unfazeable isn't really required. The immunity to colds & piddling little diseases is probably just a genre convention, too. And, really, it probably applies to more than just 4- color -- how many GM's are actually having their PCs roll to avoid catching a cold or flu? > Costume, I really, really, really *loathe* the Costume advantage. 15 pts for the ability not to have your clothes messed up? Those points will get you Combat Reflexes or Danger Sense or Enhanced Dodge or Magical Aptitude! If Truly Badass is a set of genre conventions & not an advantage, there is no way in hell Costume is worth 15 pts. > Recovery (if Stun damage rules are used), Hard to > Kill (5 levels). Recovery is actually a pain in the ass if you want to run super battles where the heroes or villains can be captured. By the time you KO the last one, the first one is ready for round two! Never mind having time to bundle the heroes back to the lair for the Fiendish Deathtrap. Again, I'd just use the Flesh Wounds rule: let a character (with GM approval) spend 1 cp to wake up just in time to do whatever. > Common Advantages: Good Reputation, Legal Enforcement Powers > > Disadvantages: Secret (Super Identity), Sense of Duty (Friends), Sense of Duty (Country), Code of Honor (Super Hero), Enemies (Various Super Villains) Sense of Duty (Country) isn't especially common anymore. Sense of Duty (Humanity) or (World), maybe. But Starman, Firestorm, GL, the X-Men, etc., etc. aren't particularly patriotic. > Taboo Traits: Any severely antisocial mental disadvantage (like Murder Addiction or Pyromania), Odious Personal Habits. Odious Personal Habit (Boy Scout) is allowable. ;-) > 4-Color Super Villain Package [snip] Same comments on the ads as with the heroes. > Disadvantages: Secret (Super Identity), Unluck, Greedy (Money or Power), Overconfidence, Code of Honor (Super Villain), Obsession (Committing Crimes), Trademark, Callous, Selfish, Destiny (Never succeed with any plan to take over the world), Enemy (Super Heroes and various Law Enforcement Agencies). Not every villain has all of these disads. Most of 'em have at least one though . . . - ------------------ |-- Bob Huss -- |coyote6@concentric.net "The best lack all conviction, while the worst | or Are full of passionate intensity." |rhuss@email.sjsu.edu --W.B. Yeats Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1998 15:33:29 -0500 (EST) From: tbarnes@iupui.edu Subject: Re: Supers Package (was Re: 4 color rules) > > Regeneration (Limitation: Crippling Injuries only, -50%), > > Speaking seriously: I think a variation of the Flesh Wounds rule (spend 1 cp & all your wounds were "merely flesh wounds" & you've got full HT) is sufficient for handling Crippling Injuries. Spend 1 cp (and have the GM's approval) & permanent becomes lasting, lasting becomes temporary. Combined with Rapid Healing, which adds +5 to your HT roll to avoid the crippling injury in the first place, and Luck to reroll when an 18 comes up, that should be sufficient. And > it's cheaper, too. True, but that requires an additional rule. I was trying to stay within the existing GURPS mechanics for the template. > > Unfazeable, > > Not really Unfazeable -- heroes do get upset (see Aquaman, Spiderman, > etc.). Strong Will, definitely. Couple of levels in most cases. I thought about adding in Strong Will to reflect exactly that, but then I figured that Supers don't seem to get scared, freaked out, or boggled by *anything*. Horrifying legion of space aliens? No problemo.Demon from hell. Doesn't bother them. Or, if it does, it certainly doesn't slow them down. > Maybe a new advantage -- something like "Determined: you never give > up hope" or the like, to cover those situations where Galactus is prepping to eat the earth, the Legions of Hell are rampaging through downtown, and Doomsday is looking for our Hero, but Hero doesn't > give up. That's Strong Will. > Better idea: Destiny (May get knocked down, but *will* get up again). > ;-) I thought about that, now that I think about it a bit more, that's a good idea. Destiny: Will never die or be seriously crippled by anything but the most extreme violence from the most cosmically powerful forces). > The immunity to colds & piddling little diseases is probably just a genre convention, too. And, really, it probably applies to more than just 4-color -- how many GM's are actually having their PCs roll to avoid catching a cold or flu? I was thinking of things that were a bit more serious. For example, Batman can crawl through sewers or swim in polluted rivers when he's covered with serious wounds and his wounds never get infected. Compare this to real police divers who have to go on a 2-week course of antibiotics if they go diving in certain U.S. rivers in full SCUBA gear! > Costume, > > I really, really, really *loathe* the Costume advantage. Then change the cost. The advantage is part of the template. You will notice that I didn't include point costs for all of this stuff. > If Truly Badass is a set of genre conventions & not an advantage, there is no way in hell Costume is worth 15 pts. Oops. Yes, if you count Truly Badass as an advantage, then it must be part of any Super package. (Or, at least Badass). > > Recovery (if Stun damage rules are used), Hard to Kill (5 levels). > Again, I'd just use the Flesh Wounds rule: let a character (with GM approval) spend 1 cp to wake up just in time to do whatever. See Above. > Sense of Duty (Country) isn't especially common anymore. Sense of Duty (Humanity) or (World), maybe. But Starman, Firestorm, GL, the X-Men, etc., etc. aren't particularly patriotic. Sense of Duty (Country) was my shorthand way of saying "Sense of Duty to law- abiding citizens of the super's city, state, province, region, and/or country. Perhaps it would be better to say Sense of Duty (Innocent and Law-abiding people everywhere). > Odious Personal Habit (Boy Scout) is allowable. ;-) But only at quirk level. Part of the convention is that super heroes have basically agreeable personalities. A few of them might be a bit "rough around the edges" but they're all basically kewl people who are fun to be around. > > Disadvantages: Secret (Super Identity), Unluck, Greedy (Money or > > Power), Overconfidence, Code of Honor (Super Villain), Obsession (Committing Crimes), Trademark, Callous, Selfish, Destiny (Never succeed with any plan to take over the world), Enemy (Super Heroes and various Law Enforcement Agencies). > > Not every villain has all of these disads. Most of 'em have at least one though . . . Hmm. Alright: Disadvantages: Secret (Super Identity), Callous, Selfish, Destiny (Never succeed with any plan to take over the world), Enemy (Superheroes and Law Enforcement agencies), Overconfidence Add: Bad Reputation (Super Villain), Must take at least one of the following disadvantages: Unluck, Greedy, Code of Honor (Super Villain), Obsession, Delusion, OPH, Appearance (Plain or worse), Trademark. Thomas Barnes [Rage] >>> Unfazeable, > >> Not really Unfazeable -- heroes do get upset (see Aquaman, Spiderman, etc.). Strong Will, definitely. Couple of levels in most cases. >I thought about adding in Strong Will to reflect exactly that, but then I figured that Supers don't seem to get scared, freaked out, or boggled by *anything*. Horrifying legion of space aliens? No problemo. Demon from hell. Doesn't bother them. Or, if it does, it certainly doesn't slow them down. Fearless. >> If Truly Badass is a set of genre conventions & not an advantage, there is no way in hell Costume is worth 15 pts. >Oops. Yes, if you count Truly Badass as an advantage, then it must >be part of any Super package. (Or, at least Badass). I vehemently disagree. Blue Beetle is badass? Is the Whizzer badass? Artie and Leech? Badass is for the Captain America and Batman types (possibly Wolverine, too; but that just may be an OPH). Rage Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1998 16:07:49 -0600 From: "Brett Slocum" Subject: Re: Supers Package From: tbarnes@iupui.edu > > > Regeneration (Limitation: Crippling Injuries only, -50%), > > Speaking seriously: I think a variation of the Flesh Wounds rule (spend 1 cp & all your wounds were "merely flesh wounds" & you've got full HT) is sufficient for handling Crippling Injuries. Spend 1 cp (and have the GM's approval) & permanent becomes lasting, lasting becomes temporary. Combined with Rapid Healing, which adds +5 to your HT roll to avoid the crippling injury in the first place, and Luck to reroll when an 18 comes up, that should be sufficient. And it's cheaper, too. > > True, but that requires an additional rule. I was trying to stay > within the existing GURPS mechanics for the template. Just A Flesh Wound is part of the Cinematic Rules package that should be part of any 4C campaign. I don't have chapter and verse, but it's been in there since Supers, 1st ed. This brings up another topic, which set of Cinematic rules best emulate 4C Supers? > Sense of Duty (Country) was my shorthand way of saying "Sense of > Duty to law-abiding citizens of the super's city, state, province, region, > and/or country. > > Perhaps it would be better to say Sense of Duty (Innocent and Law-abiding people everywhere). Yes, Sense of Duty (Innocent Bystanders). > > Odious Personal Habit (Boy Scout) is allowable. ;-) > > But only at quirk level. Part of the convention is that super heroes have basically agreeable personalities. A few of them might be a bit "rough around the edges" but they're all basically kewl people who are fun to be around. [You'll have to forgive me, but this is based on memories of superheroes from 15 years ago.] Tell that to Wolverine. And I seem to remember that Hawkeye was a bit Lecherous. Ironman was a cold bastard as I recall. I think OPHs are OK, as long as they don't get above say, -2. Didn't Wolverine have a bit of Bloodlust too? Or am I high? - --- Brett Slocum, slocum AT io DOT com (remove NOSPAM from reply address) http://www.io.com/~slocum/ Tekumel Web Site: http://www.io.com/~slocum/tekumel.html GURPS Web Site: http://www.io.com/~slocum/gurps.html Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1998 19:27:45 -0400 From: andi jones Subject: Re: Supers Package (was Re: 4 color rules) bob huss wrote: >Maybe a new advantage -- something like "Determined: you never give up hope" or the like, to cover those situations where Galactus is prepping to eat the earth, the Legions of Hell are rampaging through downtown, and Doomsday is looking for our Hero, but Hero doesn't give up. related to this would be giving some supers the "higher purpose" advantage, or some variant thereon. many heroes, during their origins, realise at some point that they *must* be heroes, that it's their *calling*... batman is an example of this, seeing how his life changed that night when that big bat flew into his study, acting as the omen that started his crime-fighting career. likewise, peter parker's realisation that "with great power comes great responsibility" is similar. Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1998 21:11:49 -0500 (EST) From: tbarnes@iupui.edu Subject: Re: Supers Package (was Re: 4 color rules) > related to this would be giving some supers the "higher purpose" advantage, or some variant thereon. many heroes, during their origins, realise at some point that they *must* be heroes, that it's their *calling*... This is marvelous. It explains much of the rest of the hero schtick. I'll include it in the template. Thomas Barnes OPTION 2 [Rage] >>> Regeneration (Limitation: Crippling Injuries only, -50%), > >> Speaking seriously: I think a variation of the Flesh Wounds rule (spend 1 cp & all your wounds were "merely flesh wounds" & you've got full HT) is sufficient for handling Crippling Injuries. Spend 1 cp (and have the GM's approval) & permanent becomes lasting, lasting becomes temporary. Combined with Rapid Healing, which adds +5 to your HT roll to avoid the crippling injury in the first place, and Luck to reroll when an 18 comes up, that should be sufficient. And it's cheaper, too. >True, but that requires an additional rule. I was trying to stay within the existing GURPS mechanics for the template. Personally, I think 4 Color is more a play-style than package of Advantages. But try this: Apply the Supers Package to the "world" rather than individual supers. Thus *everyone* has the Costume advantage, Instantaneous, Slow Regen, or whatever. Remember that this package has to cover every hero from G'nort to Batman to Spiderman to Superman to Thor. Calculate the "point cost" for this. Now, when you need to build a “realistic” normal (though why you’d want to in a cinematic, 4 color world is beyond me), you can just take the "Usual Background" ***disadvantage***, worth negative whatever the world package was. MISCELLANEY “Taste my justice!” – the Tick TURNING RULES [Voidhawk ] Actually I have retooled the turning rules for Supers. Calculate the "hex speed" the super is travelling and consider a line that many hexes long in the direction he is travelling. Then figure the new path he wants to trasvel and figure the hexes of curvature. Divide this by five and you have a penalty to the Flight skill roll. Essentially a 90 degree turn at 10 hexes/turn is about 16 hexes difference, scoring a -3 roll to skill roll. as a rule, each 5 hexes of move has 8 hexes of difference in a 90 degree arc. at 100 hexes/turn there are 160 hexes difference in said arc scoring a -35 to roll. obviously for greater manoeverability you can retool the divider. HOWEVER: [Revenant] Sounds complicated. Why not just roll vs Flight skill at a penalty of -3 per hexside turned or something? CRUSHING THE OPPOSITION [4C Posse] ["Bob Huss" ] Also, some rule/way for supers to take on tanks, alien battle pods, alien powered armor goons & the like, and crush them WITHOUT having to have an overwhelming attack power that would turn Joe Normal into paste. Dave Pulver posted a table a while back to convert "real-world" damage & DR into "4-color world" damage & DR. Something like that might work, but it is a little complex. (I can dig it up if y'all want to see it?) Any other ideas? AND: [Rage] I like an idea that S. John came up with for GURPS: Russia (well, he swiped it from Bunnies & Burrows, but...) of Bogatyr class stuff. Here's an idea: combo that idea with Badass' scrub rules: Multiple levels of scrubs, which define how many actions the hero must spend to take it out. Scrub 1 = random motorcycle Scrub 2 = one of KAOS' tank-cycles Scrub 3 = the prototype tank-cycle mk. 2 (mit iodine!) Notta Scrub = the Tank-cycle that Dr. Ickybad is in. So, Ultradude has to use 1 action/attack to crunch a random motorcycle, 2 to take out an "average" tank-cycle, etc. Of course, the actions have to fit the character. Ultradude would use his ultra-vision; Owlguy would use his owlarangs; Fishman could summon an albino sewer alligator to pop out and bite the wheel... How's that for four-color? AND: [Lizard ] I'd also say that this number could be fractional, depending on the power level of the campaign, to wit, in a 250 point campaign, a scrub could be defined as '2 action', while, in 1,000 point campagain, a scrub could be defines a '1/4 action' -- meaning Megamuscleman could dispense with 4 of them per turn. AND: [Bob Huss" ] Here's David's table: - ------- Forwarded Message Follows ------- Date: Sun, 19 Oct 1997 12:48:35 -0400 (EDT) From: "David L. Pulver" To: GURPSnet-L@lists.io.com Subject: Fun Table Reply-to: "David L. Pulver" Just for Fun: Logarithmic Damage system for GURPS Supers Use the Old dice to New dice columns to convert all gun, beam weapon, explosive and energy melee weapon damage above 3d (but not ST-based damage). Use the Old DR to New DR columns to convert all Vehicles, Robot, Mecha and personal armor DR that is above DR 10, but not magical DR or DR bought as per GURPS Supers/Compendium/etc. Use the Old ST to New ST columns to convert Animal, Dinosaurs, Vehicles, Robot and Mecha ST values if they are above ST 30, as these were built on a linear fashion. Do not convert ST for supers or aliens, as these are intended to be semi-logarithmic. For lifting purposes, convert new ST to old ST to determine effective ST for carrying stuff. Old Dice New Dice Old DR New DR OldST NewST 3d 3d 10.5 10 30 30 5d 4d 17.5 14 50 40 7d 5d 24 18 70 50 10d 6d 35 21 100 60 15d 7d 52.5 24 150 70 20d 8d 70 28 200 90 30d 9d 105 32 300 90 45d 10d 157.5 35 450 100 70d 11d 245 38 700 110 100d 12d 350 42 1000 120 150d 13d 525 46 1500 130 200d 14d 700 49 2000 140 300d 15d 1,050 52 3000 150 450d 16d 1,575 56 4500 160 700d 17d 2,450 60 7000 170 1,000d 18d 3,500 63 10,000 180 1,500d 19d 5,250 66 15,000 190 2,000d 20d 7,000 70 20,000 200 3,000d 21d 10,500 74 30,000 210 4,500d 22d 15,750 77 45,000 220 7,000d 23d 24,500 80 70,000 230 10,000d 24d 35,000 84 100,000 240 15,000d 25d 52,500 88 150,000 250 20,000d 26d 70,000 91 200,000 260 30,000d 27d 105,000 94 300,000 270 45,000d 28d 157,500 98 450,000 280 70,000d 29d 245,000 102 700,000 290 100,000d 30d 350,000 105 1,000,000 300 150,000d 31d 525,000 108 etc. etc. 200,000d 32d 700,000 112 300,000d 33d 1,050,000 116 450,000d 34d 1,575,000 119 700,000d 35d 2,450,000 122 1,000,000d 36d 3,500,000 126 1,500,000d 37d 5,250,000 130 2,000,000d 38d 7,000,000 133 3,000,000d 39d 10,500,000 136 4,500,000d 40d 15,750,000 140 7,000,000d 41d 24,500,000 144 10,000,000d 42d 35,000,000 147 15,000,000d 43d 52,500,000 150 20,000,000d 44d 70,000,000 154 30,000,000d 45d 105,000,000 158 If a result falls between two numbers, use the lower. For armor divisors, multiply damage by divisor to get Old Dice, then find new dice, then halve the result and replace with a simple (2) divisor. EXAMPLE: 7d rifle = 5d. 6d x 30 tank cannon = 180d = 13d. ST 300 elephant = ST 90. ST 200 superhero = stays ST 200. Moreover, his damage stays the same as well, so his 21d punch actually is equivalent to 3000d. However, he is effectively ST 20,000 for lifting stuff. DR 1,680 M1 Abrams tank frontal armor = DR 56. Hey, our superhero can now punch through tank armor... DR 35 reinforced kevlar body armor = DR 21. 6dx4(10) light anti-tank rocket = 240d for penetration purposes = 14d / 2 = 7d(2). Much neater. 12d(2) armor piercing .50 caliber round = 4d(2). (12d x 2 =24 old dice = 8 new dice, halved = 4 new dice and (2)). 1-kiloton nuclear bomb doing 6d x 4,000,000 (24,000,000d) =44d damage. Cool! DR 132 can bounce a nuke! Build the Hulk's DR for 396 points. MORE RULES Blow-through is ignored. TAKING YOUR LUMPS [Voidhawk] (From the Genre Conventions List) > Life is resilient: you can take a lot of damage before crippling or dying; also, recovery from >damage can be very quick. (Little non- powered guys can take a punch from big brick guys >without being splattered across the walls.) Guns, fire, weapons and explosions aren't nearly as >lethal as they are in real life. Seems like a liberal application of the Stun rules then AND: [Revenant] Personally I find an approach similar to that of DC Heroes easier - in appropriate genres, specific people don't make death rolls until -HP x 5, and only automatically die at - HP x 10. In some genres, they just *never* die. Either way, characters still have to roll vs unconsciousness. Note that in some genres, though the heroes and villains won't have this, innocent bystanders will... FORCE FIELDS [Rage] I'm not sure I like how GURPS currently does the force field power. (DR, Affects Others, Area Effect, Wall x 2, IIRC). Has anyone mapped a better version of the ability to throw up forcefields with attendant powerstunts? (Gut reaction: the Psi Psychokinesis Power is prolly best way to go, currently.) AND: [Eric ] Psychokinesis would work though that's not how I would do it. DR won't work - sure it's a protective force, but you can't bubble someone up you just end up giving them free DR not preventing them from leaving. I would use Ice Wall w/Wallx2 (and No Obvious Effect if you want it invisible too). That give you the ability to create constructs in any shape that will interfere with attacks or allow you to encase others. It also gives the nice ability for others to chip away at your field and allows you the option of reinforcing at your force field. As for the other aspects of the invisible woman's power: Generic Blast 6/lvl w/No Obvious and Impaling option if she wants to create blunt force objects or force daggers to hurt people with. Matter Surfing (Flight) w/No Obvious for her "riding" of force fields. She rounds out to a pretty good 500 point character when you think about it... THE CARE AND FEEDING OF A SECRET ID [Rage] IF you are specifically playing 4 color, and not wearing a costume, I'd say: * Since you are not in costume, that means you're in your secret identity. * Guess what? Your identity isn't secret anymore. * Now you are a world-famous openly super person. Protesters will shower you with garbage and tracts, people will be offering you endorsement deals and jobs, suck-ups and yes- men will surround you, you'll need to get an agent for all those deals, villians will know generally where you are at all times, your family and friends are now in perpetual danger, you've got groupies, good luck on finding a true love now, tabloids will scream your name across their headlines all the time, the government may ask you (force you?) to join a meta-team, you probably won't be able to get health or property insurance, people won't want you living in their neighborhood, you'll be blamed for all the crimes that happen around you that you couldn't stop... Think about being a combination minority, public menace, rock/movie star, cop, politician, and private citizen. Scary. AND: [] I've come up with a "Famous" disadvantage (-5 points, must have some form of Reputation or High Status as a prerequsite) that covers exactly this situation. It's hard to go adventuring when you're surrounded by groupies, paparazzi, thrill seekers, etc. YOU’RE A BIGGUN, AIN’TCHA? [tbarnes@iupui.edu ] Yes. Since the Hulk has the effect of having several levels of Growth, he can add a bonus for his extra size. Let's say +10% of the super's base ST per level of Growth or Increased Density to all bashing or slamming attacks. Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1998 02:31:30 +1000 (EST) From: Voidhawk Subject: Re: 4-colour rules posse Here are some conversions from Another (nameless) super hero RPG. I just thought I should contribute, just for once ;) Holding your fire: This manoevre works by holding back the attack until the target is good and vulnerable. The characetr must have won inititaive by at least two points to perform this manoevre, and does so at -2 to skill. The target is struck at a more inconvienient moment (midleap, point blanck range, before a charge etcc) and recieves some penalty from the sudden attack (a knockdown perhaps,or a penalty to defence, or maybe a little extra damage, or perhaps a weak point is now somewhat exposed. Perfect for pulling out little "surprise wonedr weapons" and secret attacks. Groundstrike: This attack is directed at the ground beneath the targets feet, kicking up damaging debris. The attacker is inflicted with a -1 to attack, but the target is inflicted with the following a) Damage, ricochetting from the ground. He recives the grounds DR in protection though. b) a minus1 to minus 2 to defence from unstable ground and unexpected angle c) May be sprayed with harmless but blinding debris d) May have the ground beneath him destroyed, leading to other problems e) Good chance of being knocked down Double teaming: Or trippleteaming or... you get the picture. All combatants, err, attackers confer with the target locations and strike as one. (usually witha -1 penalty per additional attacker) all successful strikes do damage, but DR is divided by the number of successful attacks. Not usually applicable against dodging targets, but graet against giant robots, force fields, prison walls etc. unsuccessfull attacks also hit, but have full DR applied to their damage. Fastball special: (thanks to Logan and Piotyr) A special instance using a strong super sto propell a teammate to a target. The Attack is resolved by either the throwee's relavent attack skill, or the thrower's throwing skill.(note throwing speciality Throwing: Teammate) The attack damages by using either a normal attack by the Throwee (plus any bonus due to velocity) or as a standard superslam. GM's may feel a little more comfortable if the Thrower and throwee make additional rolls(DX, Throwing, Acrobatics) but that is a flavor thing at the GM's option. Failure's can be spectacular Shockwave: This is the patented gound stomp we have all been looking for. The attacker strikes the ground, and the damage ripples out from there like an explosion. Damage is normal for an explosion, but the targets get the benifits of the ground's DR, and flingable targets take half damage (but full damage from knockback) EG. Canyon throws his stonebolt (stone missile 10dice) at the ground and rolls 1,2,2,4,4,4,5,5,2,6 (35 damage) Targets at pground zero take 35 damage (minus the ground's DR) Assuming an average of -3 points of damage per hex Park bench: four hexes away takes 23 damage(minus grounds DR) Morty: six hexes away takes (17-Ground's DR) divided by two in damage, but is flung 2 hexes by the shockwave. Morty's car: a hex behind morty (ouch) will take 14 points of damage minus ground's DR. The main purpose of this attack is to get those nasty agile supers damaged when conventional strikes miss almost routinely. Also it's ranged application for the super tough, and the area effect make it quite a nice manouver. Sheilding: The character throws himself at an attack meant for some other target. The character performing the manoever may move up to half his combat move for this, but uses all attacks this turn in doing so. (optionally, the GM may require the PC to have won initiative). If the movement is possible, then the target and attacker meet in acontest of skills to determine if successful or not. Luring: Dangerous to perform, the character positions himself before an attack, but attempts a last second dodge (-2?) allowing the striker to attack the target behind the target. this requires that the target gets in between HIS target and the attacker. If the Attacker critically misses on his shot ,then he is assumed to have struck the traget's intended target anyway. Just my two bits, a little contribution in thanks for all you assistance. VOIDHAWK - --Hello?...is this reality talking?-- Date: Thu, 09 Apr 1998 13:01:20 -0500 From: Eric Subject: Instant & Super Defenses (was powr stunts) We play with 3 levels of Instanteous: Instant 10% - still requires an action but happens right away instead of the beginning of next turn (blasts are like firing guns) No Concentration 10% - still goes off at beginning of next round but doesn't take an action. Instant and No Concentatration can be combined for a power that doesn't take an action and goes off right now. Less Time 20% - Takes 1/2 the time to activate as it normally does. Useful for speeding powers up. (We play that each level of super speed, growth, shrinking, etc. takes a second to activate.) Can be used to reduce time down to 1 sec which then requires the Instant enhancement. Date: Fri, 10 Apr 1998 02:31:27 +1000 From: Revenant Subject: Re: Instant & Super Defenses (was powr stunts) > We play with 3 levels of Instanteous: > Instant 10% - still requires an action but happens right away instead of > the beginning of next turn (blasts are like firing guns) > No Concentration 10% - still goes off at beginning of next round but > doesn't take an action. > Instant and No Concentatration can be combined for a power that doesn't > take an action and goes off right now. That sounds incredibly abusable. What's to stop me buying, say, Energy Blast and Flame Jet both with these enhancements at level 10 each, then I can fire off two attacks each turn, and still have an action left over. > Less Time 20% - Takes 1/2 the time to activate as it normally does. > Useful for speeding powers up. (We play that each level of super speed, > growth, shrinking, etc. takes a second to activate.) Can be used to > reduce time down to 1 sec which then requires the Instant enhancement. - -------------- Revenant [kgb@rosella.apana.org.au] ------------------- "The whole principle is wrong; it's like demanding that grown men live on skim milk because the baby can't eat steak." - - author Robert A. Heinlein on censorship. Date: Thu, 09 Apr 1998 17:24:19 -0500 From: Eric Subject: Supers Psionics Ok, for those of you that are interested I have posted the "Supers Psionic" rules that I have created in my web space and will shortly submit them to the archives as well (I'm going to tweak a little more since they are just excerpts). These rules are designed for easier play, no tables, and a closer fit to the supers genre. Tell me what you think. The URL is http://rampages.onramp.net/~eric/psionics.txt