Wild Talents - Globular

[MrThoth]

Quick question for the people out there: I am making a Wild Talents character (hooray for New Arcadia, after a few people in the RP group listened to it they all wanted to play it) with water based powers.  I am tempted at grabbing the globular intrinsic but was wondering how the 4 designated head boxes work.  Since I am one big hit location, can I just have the last four boxes of my massive pool of hit boxes be the head boxes?  And would that mean that I would need to have the rest of my non-head boxes filled up before I started taking damage to them? 

Thanks in advance!

[Tadanori Oyama]

I think you still have to pick numbers. Your vital point (brain boxes) is (are) normally location 10.

I'll have to reread the intrinsic but I assume by "define" they mean pick numbers.

[clockworkjoe]

I think you still have to pick numbers. Your vital point (brain boxes) is (are) normally location 10.

I'll have to reread the intrinsic but I assume by "define" they mean pick numbers.

the point of globular is that you only have 1 hit location.  I think it means that you get to pick which of the 34 hit boxes are brain boxes - obviously the last 4 would be the logical ones to take. It's included so you know how much damage a globular character can take before death/knock out.

However, now that I think about it - you don't necessarily want all those brain boxes in the last 4 boxes. Think of this example:

You take 18 shock damage. Okay so far. Then you take 16 killing damage. Now you have to fill in unmarked boxes first so the last 16 boxes get filled in with killing damage including the brain boxes so you die.

Instead let's say you have a brain box included in every 8th box. You take 18 shock damage. 2 brain boxes marked with shock. Then you take 16 lethal damage. You don't die as only 2 brain boxes are filled with killing damage. The other two are filled with shock damage so you fall unconscious.

[Tadanori Oyama]

Killing damage force shock damage to the right? I assumed that killing would always float to the top of the damage boxes and pushed the shock farther along.

[clockworkjoe]

no, shock stays where it is.

You take 4 shock and 4 killing to the chest. You're in pain but still up. Then you take 3 more shock damage. Last 2 boxes are checked as shock, then the first box is switched to killing.

[MrThoth]

Oh ok, that makes sense then.  I was thinking like WoD where bashing is pushed down, and that's not a bad idea to split them up, hadn't thought about that.  Thanks!

[Tadanori Oyama]

Interesting. Cool to know.

Also, asshole power idea. Extra Tough is normally 5 points a die because you need Engulf to cover all locations. If your Globular you could do a 2 point per die version since you have only 1 hit location.

No, wait, that'd be 4 per die (for hard dice) to get 1 box per width. Normal extra tough with engulf gets 6 boxes per width for 10. 40% of the cost, 17% of the effect, not a cost effective good idea.

[clockworkjoe]

from the WT book - just to clarify about damage

EXAMPLE: A fanatic from the End Gang kicks
Te Red Scare with a 3x5. Tat does width
in Shock damage, so Te Red Scare takes 3
Shock to hit location 5, his right arm. Te
next round, another End Gang thug stabs
Te Red Scare with a big knife that inficts
width in Killing, rolling 3x6. Te Red Scare
sufers 3 Killing damage, again to the right
arm. He started with 5 wound boxes on his
right arm, so 2 of the 3 Killing points fll
the 2 empty wound boxes. Te third point of
Killing damage is divided between two of the
three boxes that already have Shock. Te Red
Scare’s mauled right arm now has 4 Killing
and 1 Shock inficted on it—it’s so badly hurt
it can’t be used. One more point and it might
be unusable forever!

[Tadanori Oyama]

Even deadlier than I originally though. Awesome.

[MrThoth]

Thanks Ross, makes much more sense now.

Tad - nearly a good idea.  At work now so don't have my book with me, but I thought there was something you could add to a power so its effective width was # of times you buy the extra higher than you roll.  I dont think it would be as cost effective as the Engulf for +2, but you could still buy just two hard dice and get more hit boxes.  Now as a write that I am not sure if that was only for attacks though, or if it is something you could add to a useful power.  Might have to check that when I get home.

[Tadanori Oyama]

That only works with attack and defend. When you increase Useful ranks you get additional "hidden" dice to buy down penalities in the event your trying to use the power in a difficult situation, it doesn't directly increase the width of the roll.

Here's another one: if you bought Extra Tough with the No Upward Limit extra (7 per die normal, 5 per die Globular) and spent alot of willpower at the beginning when you active the power for the first time, you get bonus width. I think it's +1 width for every 4 willpower spent. So, 2 HD would cost 28 points and you'd normally get 2 extra hit boxes but if you spent 8 willpower you could get 4. If you had enough starting will to spent 12 you'd get 5. You'd getting 5 hits boxes to every location for 40 points (1 willpower is worth 1 point) instead of 70.

Of course your game master should kick your ass for even suggesting this and you'd be starting the game with basically no willpower.

[Flawless P]

Can I hijack this thread?

Dead Ringer [Useful; 5 Points] 2hd (20 pts.)
Duration +2,
Variable Effect +4
If/Then (Variable Effect is only for choosing different appearances.) –1
If/Then (Can only mimic the appearance of another living being.) -1
If/Then (Can only mimic the appearance of another living being you have had physical contact with.) -1
Capacities: N/A.
Effect: You can change your appearance to impersonate anyone you have previously had physical contact with.

Is this a legitimate alteration to a standard power? It is my first attempt at creating a character...any help would be great.

[Tadanori Oyama]

I don't think you need variable effect for this. In my opinion even though it's different appearances the power is limited enough that Variable Effect isn't required.

If/Then (Can only mimic the appearance of another living being.) -1
If/Then (Can only mimic the appearance of another living being you have had physical contact with.) -1

As a game master I'd only allow the second one of these. Also, is the wording intentionally done so that you can't continue to copy someone after their dead? Also, you won't be able to mimic robts, androids, or other synthetic (but humanodi appearing) individuals. Which makes sense if Source is something like Lifeforce.

Capacities: N/A.

Self. You want the power to effect you so the capacity is self.

[Flawless P]

I actually left variable effect on there because I copied the dead ringer power from the book then made some slight alterations. Also living means at the time of contact. The premise is he can touch someone and store their dna sequence within his own then call it to the surface when he wants to mimic them. The power isnt refined enough to let him use powers of those individuals.

So I should drop variable effect and use useful duration 2 and if than absorbed subjects only?

Whats the cost on that? 3pts per die?

[Tadanori Oyama]

I think so. Probably want to add Subtle to make it a true stealth power.

Useful: Copy the appearance of other people.
Duration
Subtle: The change itself makes no noise.

If/Then: Individual must be alive when copied.

4 points per die, 8 per hard, so it's a 16 point power.