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1

RPGs / Re: Eclipse Phase

« on: March 15, 2014, 06:10:54 AM »

On that note there is the Eclipse Phase/Fate conversion guide that's currently in the pipe (there's a sub-forum for it on the official site) and for those that can't wait there's a fan-made hack by Martin Nerurkar (although not really knowing a lot about Fate someone else would have to vouch for it).

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Role Playing Public Radio Podcast / Re: Red Markets Alpha Playtest

« on: February 18, 2014, 12:41:12 AM »

Can casualties be burned for warmth or power or any other useful product? Does burning them spread the infection or cleans it?

Burned for heat? The human body isn't the most efficient fuel source. They could be used for physical power if you were crazy enough to strap them to a treadmill or something, but weigh the risks and rewards there. Burning them does kill most of the Blight, but you've got to burn the interior of the brain stem or the entirety of the body before they go down.

I did recall something about animal carcasses being used to heat homes in europe and a hare-brained scheme to use them to power steam trains, then I found this: Council plans to use excess heat from cremations. Although I do believe that has more to do with disposal in the first instance and harnessing the waste heat from the ovens themselves in the second, as opposed to getting fuel from the remains.

Still, it could make a neat snake-oil pitch.

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Role Playing Public Radio Podcast / Re: Upcoming RPPR One Shot games

« on: January 24, 2014, 02:58:35 AM »

What's so special about JAGs?

It is like Call of Cthulhu tried to act whimsically and failed miserably... oh and insanity is contagious... and instead of investigators you are playing an insanity self help group.  You never really know if what is going on is real or just in the player's minds or both.

It's a really neat setting, that said the JAGS system can be a little clunky and overbearing even if it is otherwise sound. I'd recommend hacking it onto either NEMESIS or the Unknown Armies system; both play really well with it and because a lot of the Wonderland material is system neutral it's not a big stretch.

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RPGs / Re: Wild Talents question

« on: January 04, 2014, 08:12:50 AM »

First off, I made a mistake.

Crunch's Universe – Crunch yelps as the first blow (3x6) comes down on his outstretched right hand badly spraining it with 4 shock damage. Worse, having suffered an injury he takes a gobble dice to his highest set (the 2x10 of his Subconscious Deflection), the pain robbing him of his protection when he needs it the most. Even if this weren't the case his defensive ability would only be enough to block one of the remaining blows. He is then struck in the head and right leg for 2 shock each and proceeds to suffer an ignominious and smelly beating.

The highlighted section is incorrect, if somehow Crunch's defense had not been disrupted his power would grant him two gobble dice which could be divided between the two remaining attacks, reducing each to width 1 and causing them to miss (for reference: page 73 of the WT:EE, page 75 of the regular version).

Other than that you've got it. As for interference, on it's own it applies to every attack that hits while it is active as regular gobble dice (including attacks with higher width). If you take it with armored defense it grants you width in HAR which is essentially the same with the exception that attacks with penetration ignore up to their penetration value in points of HAR. I can provide another example addressing this later if you want, but right now I've got to dash.

5

RPGs / Re: Wild Talents question

« on: January 02, 2014, 10:43:32 PM »

The main thing of it is that Armored Defense grants LAR which acts against every attack that meets it so long as it is in place as opposed to a non-Armored Defense power which only uses whatever sets it has which then go poof until next time it is used (or next round if it has a duration). It's basically a specific cheapo version of interference, some of the penalties of which are mitigated by taking Hardened Armor (it probably warrants mentioning that while not specifically prohibited the wording of Armored Defense and Hardened Armor seems to suggest that the latter is not supposed to be taken with HAR-granting powers. YMMV).

Alright, bear with me a moment I cooked up a couple of examples to demonstrate the functional differences. We've got two heroes with similar defensive powers:

'Crunch' is a harried accountant by day and a budding telekinetic hero by night with Subconscious Deflection 2HD (Defends. Extras & Flaws: Always On -1, Permanent +4) as his primary means of defense.

'Slither' on the other hand is just a lizardman trying to make it in a non-lizardman's world, he has Scaly Hide 2HD (Defends. Extras & Flaws: Always On -1, Armored Defense -2, Hardened Armor +2, Permanent +4). This gives him 2 points of Hardened LAR.

Example 1:

In two alternate universes our heroes have chanced upon a crack den and being eager to thwart villany are looting the place, only to be interrupted by Crackhead McGee coming back from picking up his grandmother's prescription at the Rite-Aid. He attacks them in both universes with a sawn-off 12-gauge shotgun, rolling 2x8.

Crunch's Universe - Crunch's automatic 2x10 precedes McGee's 2x8 in the initiative order, scattering the shot. While McGee is standing there dumbfounded Crunch force-shoves his attacker out of a window.

Slither's Universe – McGee's 2x8 computes to 3 shock and killing to the torso (shotgun damage is WSK+1), Slither's 2 Hardened LAR changes the shock damage to 1 and mitigates 2 of the killing damage into shock. The damage total is now 3 shock and 1 killing to the torso. If McGee's shotgun somehow had penetration the result would be the same. Wounded, Slither hisses and pounces across the room to give McGee a vicious hiding.

Example A:

McGee is back for revenge! Having just got out of traction he has gathered three of his buddies and ambushes the heroes, bursting into a Taco Bell bathroom stall to set upon them with iron bars (club damage is WS+1). They roll 3x6, 2x10, 2x2 and nothing.

Crunch's Universe – Crunch yelps as the first blow (3x6) comes down on his outstretched right hand badly spraining it with 4 shock damage. Worse, having suffered an injury he takes a gobble dice to his highest set (the 2x10 of his Subconscious Deflection), the pain robbing him of his protection when he needs it the most. Even if this weren't the case his defensive ability would only be enough to block one of the remaining blows. He is then struck in the head and right leg for 2 shock each and proceeds to suffer an ignominious and smelly beating.

Slither's Universe – Slither grunts under the staccato impact of iron on his scaly hide, taking only 1 shock to the head, torso and right leg thanks to his ophidian resilience. If the third of his attackers had instead wielded a particularly sharp switchblade (WS+1K, Pen 2) the damage to his right leg would have only been 2 shock (shock reduced to 1, 1 killing mitigated to shock) thanks to his hardened armor. Met with a roar the attackers recoil as much from Slither's sudden ferocity as the now apparent roiling stench and are set upon with verve and frenzy.