Post by takewithfood on Feb 8, 2009 1:55:54 GMT -5
Okay!
So, here we go. Can opener + can o' worms = this thread. It's time to tackle Telepathy options.
If we're going to get messy, I figure let's dive right in! Here's my proposal for Control Others, which is based on the "entangle" mechanic:
Control Minds (cost TBD; +3 CL? Prerequisite options?)
This option allows you to seize control over the weak-minded, forcing them to act as you please. Resolving mind control takes 3 steps:
1. Overcoming Mental Defense
To initiate mind control, a telepath must allocate stones and choose a target as usual.
a) Stones of Telepathy are compared to the target's total mental defense (Intelligence + Telepathy AN + Mental Defense modifier). Stones of attack in excess of mental defense should be noted, as they represent the Difficulty and Resistance to escape mental control:
Difficulty can not exceed your Telepathy AN
Resistance can be piled up to infinity
b) If the attack is successful, the victim loses any actions they may have left in the same page. Any stones spent on those lost actions are refunded.
2. Maintaining Control
Victims are not necessarily helpless; depending on the strength of the telepath, they might have a chance to fight back. However, the telepath may choose tighten their grip on the victim:
a) At the start of the next panel, you may spend stones of Telepathy to pile on more Resistance and Difficulty. Subtract the victim's mental defense as usual; however, you may ignore their Mental Defense modifier, if any. Any stones in excess add to Difficulty and Resistance. (Remember, the maximum Difficulty is equal to your Telepathy AN.)
b) If the victim's Intelligence (or Telepathy AN, if applicable and preferred) meets or exceeds the current Difficulty, they may then attempt to struggle. During their next panel, the victim may spend stones up to their Int (or Telepathy AN). These stones come directly out of the Resistance. If the Resistance is reduced to zero, the mind control is broken.
c) You must spend at least 1 stone of upkeep in Telepathy each page in order to maintain mind control, even if your victim can no longer struggle against you.
3. Controlling the Victim
While mental control is unbroken, you may decide how the victim acts:
a) After the victim has had a chance to struggle at the start of each page, you may allocate the victim's own stones into their Action Boxes as you please. The maximum number of stones you may allocate in this fashion per panel is equal to the Resistance you have piled up.
Example: Emma Frost has Telepathy 8 with an Int bonus of 4. She attempts to mentally control a Purifier captain, who has an Int of 3 and a Mental Defense modifier of 3 (thanks to an anti-telepathy chip implant). Emma acts first and allocates 8 stones into her attack, dealing 2 "damage" and gaining control. The Purifier captain loses his actions (his stones are refunded) and stands motionless like a zombie when his panel comes up.
On the second page, the Purifier captain tries to struggle out of his telepathic bonds. He has a Durability of 3 and has 15 energy in his reserve. The Difficulty of the mental control is 2 and the Resistance is also 2. With an Int of 3, the Purifier might have a chance to break the bond... unless Emma tightens it first.
And that's exactly what she does. Not one to take chances, Emma Frost spends another 9 stones of telepathy (1 stone of upkeep, and 8 stones of attack). The Purifier's Mental Defense modifier no longer applies (since she's already breached his defenses), so only the Purifier's Int 3 counts against the attack. 5 stones get through. The Difficulty and Resistance both increase to 7. The Purifier is now helplessly ensnared.
Now Emma is free to control the Purifier as she pleases. Since the Resistance is 7, she may allocate up to 7 stones of the Purifier's own energy into any Action she pleases. She puts 2 of his stones into Ranged Combat (+3 for the captain's assault rifle) and targets one of the captain's own men. The GM assigns a circumstance bonus of 1 stone for such a surprise attack!
I know it's complicated, but it really isn't very different than Entangle. To keep the option from being too devastating, you have to give the victim an opportunity to struggle - and struggling necessitates some complicated rules.
It's set up so that characters with high Int are very hard to control; characters with Telepathy are even worse, but a powerful telepath might still be able to control a weaker one. I also like that it benefits characters with high Telepathy ANs, rather than those who simply have a huge Int and a tiny AN.
Yes, it's still powerful, but consider that in my example, Emma Frost spent a total of 16 stones over 2 panels to gain full control over her victim. If he was a lot smarter, she'd probably have to spend more than that. It's energy intensive to establish mind control, but the payoff is pretty sweet.
I'm not sure what to charge as a cost. Perhaps +3 CL? Maybe one could get away with +2 CL with some prerequisite options. Not sure how I feel about prerequisites either, to be honest.
I'm still not in love with this option, but I think it can actually work. I'd love to playtest it more, as I've only run a few scenarios myself. If anyone is unclear as to how it works, ask away.
~TWF
So, here we go. Can opener + can o' worms = this thread. It's time to tackle Telepathy options.
If we're going to get messy, I figure let's dive right in! Here's my proposal for Control Others, which is based on the "entangle" mechanic:
Control Minds (cost TBD; +3 CL? Prerequisite options?)
This option allows you to seize control over the weak-minded, forcing them to act as you please. Resolving mind control takes 3 steps:
1. Overcoming Mental Defense
To initiate mind control, a telepath must allocate stones and choose a target as usual.
a) Stones of Telepathy are compared to the target's total mental defense (Intelligence + Telepathy AN + Mental Defense modifier). Stones of attack in excess of mental defense should be noted, as they represent the Difficulty and Resistance to escape mental control:
Difficulty can not exceed your Telepathy AN
Resistance can be piled up to infinity
b) If the attack is successful, the victim loses any actions they may have left in the same page. Any stones spent on those lost actions are refunded.
2. Maintaining Control
Victims are not necessarily helpless; depending on the strength of the telepath, they might have a chance to fight back. However, the telepath may choose tighten their grip on the victim:
a) At the start of the next panel, you may spend stones of Telepathy to pile on more Resistance and Difficulty. Subtract the victim's mental defense as usual; however, you may ignore their Mental Defense modifier, if any. Any stones in excess add to Difficulty and Resistance. (Remember, the maximum Difficulty is equal to your Telepathy AN.)
b) If the victim's Intelligence (or Telepathy AN, if applicable and preferred) meets or exceeds the current Difficulty, they may then attempt to struggle. During their next panel, the victim may spend stones up to their Int (or Telepathy AN). These stones come directly out of the Resistance. If the Resistance is reduced to zero, the mind control is broken.
c) You must spend at least 1 stone of upkeep in Telepathy each page in order to maintain mind control, even if your victim can no longer struggle against you.
3. Controlling the Victim
While mental control is unbroken, you may decide how the victim acts:
a) After the victim has had a chance to struggle at the start of each page, you may allocate the victim's own stones into their Action Boxes as you please. The maximum number of stones you may allocate in this fashion per panel is equal to the Resistance you have piled up.
Example: Emma Frost has Telepathy 8 with an Int bonus of 4. She attempts to mentally control a Purifier captain, who has an Int of 3 and a Mental Defense modifier of 3 (thanks to an anti-telepathy chip implant). Emma acts first and allocates 8 stones into her attack, dealing 2 "damage" and gaining control. The Purifier captain loses his actions (his stones are refunded) and stands motionless like a zombie when his panel comes up.
On the second page, the Purifier captain tries to struggle out of his telepathic bonds. He has a Durability of 3 and has 15 energy in his reserve. The Difficulty of the mental control is 2 and the Resistance is also 2. With an Int of 3, the Purifier might have a chance to break the bond... unless Emma tightens it first.
And that's exactly what she does. Not one to take chances, Emma Frost spends another 9 stones of telepathy (1 stone of upkeep, and 8 stones of attack). The Purifier's Mental Defense modifier no longer applies (since she's already breached his defenses), so only the Purifier's Int 3 counts against the attack. 5 stones get through. The Difficulty and Resistance both increase to 7. The Purifier is now helplessly ensnared.
Now Emma is free to control the Purifier as she pleases. Since the Resistance is 7, she may allocate up to 7 stones of the Purifier's own energy into any Action she pleases. She puts 2 of his stones into Ranged Combat (+3 for the captain's assault rifle) and targets one of the captain's own men. The GM assigns a circumstance bonus of 1 stone for such a surprise attack!
I know it's complicated, but it really isn't very different than Entangle. To keep the option from being too devastating, you have to give the victim an opportunity to struggle - and struggling necessitates some complicated rules.
It's set up so that characters with high Int are very hard to control; characters with Telepathy are even worse, but a powerful telepath might still be able to control a weaker one. I also like that it benefits characters with high Telepathy ANs, rather than those who simply have a huge Int and a tiny AN.
Yes, it's still powerful, but consider that in my example, Emma Frost spent a total of 16 stones over 2 panels to gain full control over her victim. If he was a lot smarter, she'd probably have to spend more than that. It's energy intensive to establish mind control, but the payoff is pretty sweet.
I'm not sure what to charge as a cost. Perhaps +3 CL? Maybe one could get away with +2 CL with some prerequisite options. Not sure how I feel about prerequisites either, to be honest.
I'm still not in love with this option, but I think it can actually work. I'd love to playtest it more, as I've only run a few scenarios myself. If anyone is unclear as to how it works, ask away.
~TWF