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Aberrant RPG - Telepathic Mastery


Heru

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Hello,

I was wondering if anybody had a Level 3 power that represents Telepathic powers in the same way that Cyberkinesis, Elemental Anima, and Elemental Mastery - that is, a power that has a whole suite of other lesser powers with it.

In the game that I am thinking about creating (which actually has two STs) one of the rules is that all players must choose a Level 3 Power that has lesser techniques within them, like the previously mentioned Cyberkinesis, Elemental Anima and Elemental Mastery. This made me realize that I wanted a technique power that represented the powers of telepathy.

As a note, I did find and we will be using the Telekinetic Mastery third level power that was posted on the Eon forums.

Any assistance and creative thoughts on the best way to create such a thing would be very much appreciated. Thanks

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Instead of creating an entirely new thread that will pretty much mimic this question but for a different power, I will just post the other power question in here as an addendum.

The second question, is there any Level 3 power that would allow a character to have the ability to manipulate or control life and its processes. I would think biokinetic-like powers that aid in the manipulation of biology and biotech would exist at lower levels, but I cannot find anything but Animal/Plant Mastery which does not suit what I am looking for.

Any thoughts on this point would also be appreciated.

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To address your last question first, there *is* a bio-k power (name?) that controls life... it's in AB:WWI. It also has a Q-min of 6. If the APG had come out it'd probably be level 4, as it is it's level 3.

On the other hand since this is more of a theme than a power, you could buy various powers that fit it. Healing. Animal Mastery (maybe with affects Microbes). Poison. Q-Bolt (defined as bio-override). Maybe Boost.

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Telekinesis could just be purchased with Elemental Mastery: TK.

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Telepathy is a very odd duck in that the level 2 power is basically a suite power. IMHO the system would have been better served by making it level 3 and making it's various aspects (locate, contact, probe, and erase) separate techniques... but as it is all of those are available with level 2.

If you felt the need to make it a level 3 power you could just make them buy an extra on it. Area or RQC would probably work best. It's a bit expensive to burn 2 to talk to someone, put RQC on it and you're burning 1 or 0.

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Bio-manip always struck me as a tad weak for level 4, aside from the comparison between Healing and Health Alteration. Your probably right, though.

as for telepathy, I think the reason they made it level 2 was, they wanted Mental Blast, Dominate, and Mirage to be separate powers. Logically, a level 3 Telepathy Mastery power would have all three ( among others ), and maybe having that much freedom to screw with peoples' minds for a single dot would be unbalancing.

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On Bio-Manipulation, do you guys think it would be a tad overwhelming if its Quantum was reduced to Level 5 rather than Level 6?

Because if I could just reduce Quantum minimum than I have the power that I want for the game, it would near perfectly reflect nova ability to control the processes of biological life. The game itself is a Quantum 1 to 5 game so having it be 6 is a tad annoying.

On Telepathy, interesting, I think I might see if I can futz around with the 2 level power to make it third level and yet keep its behavior. I really think that having it be a suite power would make a lot of sense in what and how it does things.

Thanks for the feedback

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Well, the main thing with Bio-Manip as a Level 3 Q5 power is:

-It allows permanent enhancement of baselines

-It provides healing more potent than the Healing power

-It includes what amounts to Poison ( Ranged ) as a technique

Now, the latter is solvable by dropping the autosux if there are any ( I can't recall ), and the former may not be *that* big an issue. Its the healing that's sticky. Personally, I'd solve the problem by reworking Healing into a level *2* power that functions similar to the Health Manipulation suite technique, but that's just me. I think Healing is grossly underpowered as is.

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Well, the main thing with Bio-Manip as a Level 3 Q5 power is:

-It allows permanent enhancement of baselines

-It provides healing more potent than the Healing power

-It includes what amounts to Poison ( Ranged ) as a technique

Now, the latter is solvable by dropping the autosux if there are any ( I can't recall ), and the former may not be *that* big an issue. Its the healing that's sticky. Personally, I'd solve the problem by reworking Healing into a level *2* power that functions similar to the Health Manipulation suite technique, but that's just me. I think Healing is grossly underpowered as is.

-Maybe its just me, but I don't see that great of an issue with the permanent enhancement of baselines. It doesn't allow novas to give baselines mega-attributes or enhancements or powers, it just lets them reach their potential development easier. I see nothing wrong, though I might be missing a glaring thing that is obvious in how it would break the game.

-The main issue on the technique vs the power is that it only comes into play if one player takes the power while another takes the technique - then one gets better power than the other, and that doesn't make sense if one is a technoque and one is on its own. So, modifying the Healing power to be like the technique, makes a lot of sense and evens the playing field.

-It says it functions exactly like the Poison power, which means if Poison gets autosux than so do it, but removing that makes a lot of sense. Its like how having a teleport/warp power in spatial manipulation sees the removal of the auto successes that that power gets as well.

Despite some issues on the adaption, I am glad that it doesn't seem to break the game as I think the manipulation of biological processes should be available to novas from the beginning, i.e., character creation.

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It also let's you undo nova infertility or cause nova sterility btw.

Yeah, which I think makes a lot of sense and I don't personally have a problem with. Maybe that's because the game I will be go-running will take place in the Aberrant era but on a totally unconnected to Earth planet where the novas colonize and then have things happen and they loose contact with Earth.

Anyway, because of that, the ability of novas to get beyond the sterilization of Project Proteus bothers me not one iota. :)

Still, yeah, it is in their and it does have a potential game changing effect. So duly noted, thanks.

+++

I do have to complain how using biomanipulation a nova cannot effect his own form. I would think a technique that is like Movement or Propel that lets a nova fly by creating wings or whatever, would totally fit within theme for the power. I mean if a dude with Elemental Mastery Fire can fly, why not a dude with the ability to shape and manipulate life, birds fly and thus he should be able to figure out a way to do it in his power.

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I wouldn't object to it being able to undo sterility; after all, it wouldn't exactly be a common power. Also, it would help cover Bounty without requiring some custom power.

Also, technique that do form alterations on the self seem fine to me. The key thing is, they need to be temporary. I'd probably do it as "Shapeshift, only divide sux by two", perhaps allowing you to apply it to someone else at a difficulty penalty ( requiring consent and still being limited duration, natch ).

Anyway, I take back what I said about Healing being level 2. While I would rework it to use mechanics similar to Health Manipulation, I'd keep it level 3. Otherwise, you get "Area Healing at Q5". Spending 3 quantum to heal a Stamina + Healing roll of health levels, fine. Spending the same to do that to everyone within up to a fifty meter radius? A bit much.

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I wouldn't object to it being able to undo sterility; after all, it wouldn't exactly be a common power. Also, it would help cover Bounty without requiring some custom power.

Exactly, the existence of novas at basic levels (i.e., Quantum 1 to 5) being able to have biomanipulation makes a lot of sense. And to be honest the modification of a particular fluff point doesn't truly bother me when I look at the question of game balance.

Also, technique that do form alterations on the self seem fine to me. The key thing is, they need to be temporary. I'd probably do it as "Shapeshift, only divide sux by two", perhaps allowing you to apply it to someone else at a difficulty penalty ( requiring consent and still being limited duration, natch ).

Yeah, I completely agree. I see nothing that should allow the nova to make permanent changes to his body, except cosmetic changes. That can be somewhat permanent.

My thought is that unlike the more broad nature of the techniques, this minor shapeshifting techniques would have a single focus. To shfit and create wings is a Propel technique, for example, with some image of wings appearing. Things like that.

Anyway, I take back what I said about Healing being level 2. While I would rework it to use mechanics similar to Health Manipulation, I'd keep it level 3. Otherwise, you get "Area Healing at Q5". Spending 3 quantum to heal a Stamina + Healing roll of health levels, fine. Spending the same to do that to everyone within up to a fifty meter radius? A bit much.

Right, being able to heal thousands and stuff is not exactly a Quantum 1 to 5 power, more related to Quantum 6 and the Mastery extra. I agree with you. And really, a Level 3 power (the base Healing power) should be a little more potent than an equivalent technique within another power.

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I do have to complain how using biomanipulation a nova cannot effect his own form.

It can, just not with that power. Biomanipulation is a theme, it lets you buy things like shapeshifting. In general if we're going to stuff everything that a theme can do into one power it raises the Q-min too high.

And note that using that biomanip power a nova *can* effect his own form. He can heal himself, sterilize himself, etc. The problem is that "perm shapeshift: affects others" is banned from being used on novas (i.e. they're immune).

Without that restriction all sorts of unbalanced things happen. For example (of many) you'd have the ability to give a nova (like yourself) who has Strength 2, strength 5... or perhaps higher than that since a nova's strength limit is Q+1 or Q. So basically we're talking about things that aren't allowed short of Q-Supreme (Q8 min).

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I have a print out of a suite power based on Telepathy. I don't know where I got it and I no longer have a copy on my computer. It's called "Mindscaping" and it allows all kinds of stuff up to and including completely erasing and reconstructing someone's mind. It's also pretty intensive on the perm willpower dots to make stuff permanent.

If there's enough interest I could try transcribing it, unless someone else recognizes it and has a copy? I think I got it off of the now defunct Nova-Net site.

Actually, if anyone has copies of the stuff from the old Nova-Net site I would be very interested...

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Alex Green and Metaphysician

I understand what your saying, but I disagree in the sense that certain things should be allowed to be done using this one power even though other powers might work.

For example, its like how Elemental Mastery has a movement and propel power, so, why couldn't this one - the rules would use the Propel power of Elemental Mastery and the image would be of growing wings on one's back for the duration of the power. Other examples of such things can also be described.

And I am not saying permanent modification,s that requires greater Quantum, but transitory changes to one's and other's forms should be possible at this level.

Nyxx

That sounds awesome and I wish I had been on the site before I guess it disappeared (I don't know, the site doesn't sound familiar). Anyway, if you find it possible I would love to see the power as it sounds pretty nifty and cool.

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Thing is, then it begs the question of why get Shapeshift, if you can get most of the effects of Shapeshift, along with a bunch of really really nice stuff, for the same cost.

Because shapeshift is more 'real' than using a technique. If you activate the Propel technioque of Biomanipulation, yeah, your shapeshifting but your not really shifting form - you are using a technique that has the physical imagery of shapeshifting. It would never have the total capability or potential that regular shapeshift has.

Shapeshift is for a dude who wants to actually have direct control over his entire body. Using the Propel Biomanipulation technique is for those novas that want to occasionally have a particular effect, make it look like shapeshifting, but just on an occasional benefit.

Using the technique will never be as equal or as powerful or as potent or as capable as a nova using the Shapeshift power.

I will be honest, a player that says "I want to be able to fly by making wings, out of game, this will be the Propel technique" I would be okay with it. But if a player goes "I want this and then this and then this as techniques," and all of them are pretty much shapeshift, then I would go - "sorry, you could have one of them as a technique, maybe, but yo be able to all of them, take the addtional power, it is still in theme."

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Nyxx

That sounds awesome and I wish I had been on the site before I guess it disappeared (I don't know, the site doesn't sound familiar). Anyway, if you find it possible I would love to see the power as it sounds pretty nifty and cool.

Ok, I'll see what I can do.

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Most of the techniques here hit my radar has being level 3 powers even by themselves.

Healing. Poison + Ranged. Shapeshift. The ability to reverse sterility in novas. The ability to permanently buff/debuff/alter baselines (i.e. Form Manip I think).

So this is one power can do all this (and more) ...and the question is whether it should be available at Q5 for PCs?

If I were a player and I saw this out there, I'd want it. It's *extremely* strong compared to pretty much any other listed power and it encompasses multiple other level 3 powers. This is a strong power even for Q-min 6.

For that matter, if I were a PC and only had Shapeshift and Healing (for 10 nova points), I'd feel a little annoyed that there's a off the books level 3 power available for 5 nova points that does most or everything I can do and a whole lot more.

On the other hand, if you can convince your ST to allow it... more power to you. ;)

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Ok, here it is:

Mindscaping

Level: 3

Quantum Minimum: 5

Dice Pool: Variable

Range: Variable

Duration: Special (see below)

Effect: Gives the nova power over the “landscape” of the mind.

Multiple Actions: No

Description: Mindscaping is the strongest variant of Telepathy ever recorded. While actual telepathic communication isn’t possible, it gives the nova great power; the power to alter the landscapes of someone’s mind, effectively altering their personality on the most fundamental level. With this power they can alter personalities, destroy minds, brainwash and all manner of nasty things.

A blessing is that this power is even rarer than Warp.

The typical duration for any of these techniques is maintenance though if a permanent willpower is spent, many of the techniques become permanent in effect.

Read Landscape

Dice Pool: Intelligence + Mindscaping

Range: (Quantum + Power Rating) x 5 meters

Area: N/A

Duration: Concentration

This is the most basic Mindscaping technique, and it allows the nova to view a target’s mental landscape viewing the structure of the target’s personality and also allows the viewing of memories.

Alter Memories

Dice Pool: Wits + Mindscaping

Range: (Quantum + Power Rating) meters

Area: N/A

Duration: Special (see above)

This power allows the nova to alter memories. The number of successes gathered on the roll indicates the level of changes possible. The power is resisted by a contested willpower roll with each success the target gets nullifying one success for the purposes of memory alteration.

Alter Landscape

Dice Pool: Intelligence +Mindscaping

Range: (Quantum +Power Rating) meters

Area: N/A

Duration: Special (see above)

This technique is used to alter a subject’s personality and beliefs as desired by the nova. When it wears off the target often has a mental meltdown. The exact effects on the target’s actions and Nature must be worked out with the Storyteller. In general, 6 successes are needed to completely alter a target’s personality. This power, like Alter Memories is resisted by a Willpower roll.

Wipe Landscape

Dice Pool: Intelligence +Mindscaping

Range: (Quantum) meters

Area: N/A

Duration: Special (see above)

This is the most devastating power, the ability to destroy minds entirely. This power wipes out a mind entirely leaving the target capable of only basic autonomic functions for the duration. If successful, the neural shock of this power also does (Quantum) bashing damage to the subject. Like Alter Memories, this power is resisted by a Willpower roll.

Create Landscape/Brainwashing

Dice Pool: Perception +Mindscaping

Range: (Quantum) meters

Area: N/A

Duration: Special (see above)

This power allows the creation of a totally new Mindscape within a target. Unless used on a willing, mind wiped or comatose target this is resisted by a Willpower roll as with Alter Memories. The exact level of detail that can be specified is determined by the successes on the roll, with 6 net successes allowing total customization of the new mind.

Mental Wall

Dice Pool: Intelligence +Mindscaping

Range: (Quantum + Power Rating) meters

Area: N/A

Duration: Special (see above)

This technique allows the nova to isolate a part of a mind behind a mental wall that prevents the target or anyone accessing the target’s mind from reaching the isolated area. This can be used to block access to memories, a new, created personality, or even things like sight or hearing. The number of successes score indicates the difficulty of the Willpower or Telepathy roll needed to gain temporary access to the isolated part of the target’s mind. By sacrificing one of the successes on the roll, the nova may set a condition under which the wall may be lifted for a short time, each success used in this way subtracts from the successes needed to bypass the wall. This power is resisted by a Willpower roll just like Alter Memories.

Detect Minds

Dice Pool: Perception +Mindscaping

Range: (Quantum + Power Rating) x5 meters

Area: as range, centered on nova

Duration: Maintenance

This basic power allows the novas to detect the presence and (if known to him from previous encounters) identity, of all minds within the power’s range. No other information other than basic identity and location is gathered from using this technique.

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Alex Green

The problem Alex is that I am the ST, hence my question to you guys - I need others opinion before i can make a decision for or against reducing the minimum Quantum level from 6 to 5.

Healing. Poison + Ranged. Shapeshift.

These things do cause me some concern, which is why I need to other's opinions (besides my own) in order to decide if I should allow it to be a Quantum 5 power.

The ability to reverse sterility in novas. The ability to permanently buff/debuff/alter baselines (i.e. Form Manip I think).

These things don't bother me, especially if, asf or the permanent buff and alter, the baselines cannot be given mega-attributes or powers. If they can be made into the best that humans can be (five in attributes and five in abilities) then I am fine with it, Novas can get that in a moment's time.

Look, all in all, I want one thing - I want there to exist a Level 3 Quantum 4 or 5 power that allows a nova to have some control over biological life in the vein of Elemental Mastery and Anima.

Now, this can be the Biomanipulation power, or it can be something else, and if it is something else I would gladly work with others to try and come up with the power and its various techniques.

Nyxx

That is very cool. I like it because while it still requies the Nova to get Telepathy (which would totally always be in theme) to get regular mind-to-mind contact, this provides a more broad spectrum power for those that want to mentally touch and alter other's minds. And I like how its called Mindscaping, that is a cool bit of fluff.

Thanks for posting it, I appreciate it.

When I get some more free time, tonight probably, I will comment on some of the things within the power framework that I see and might want to talk about, or maybe even change.

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That is very cool. I like it because while it still requies the Nova to get Telepathy (which would totally always be in theme) to get regular mind-to-mind contact, this provides a more broad spectrum power for those that want to mentally touch and alter other's minds. And I like how its called Mindscaping, that is a cool bit of fluff.

Thanks for posting it, I appreciate it.

When I get some more free time, tonight probably, I will comment on some of the things within the power framework that I see and might want to talk about, or maybe even change.

Sounds cool, I'll be glad to help work out how to improve and/or balance it. I think it was originally created by Scott Kearney, who had the Nova-Net site back a few years ago. I actually have a few powers he created printed out and no longer in my computer.

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These things don't bother me, especially if, asf or the permanent buff and alter, the baselines cannot be given mega-attributes or powers. If they can be made into the best that humans can be (five in attributes and five in abilities) then I am fine with it, Novas can get that in a moment's time.

Max Attributes (7 nova points), Various body-mods (Extra Health Level, maybe gills), Maybe other body mods too, so we're basically talking about street level novas. And we could slap Mite on top of that.

And it might be possible to make a baseline like this once a day. That's not *broken* by nova combat standards but it's certainly a big deal.

Note that Molecular Mastery's equiv suite technique forced you to pay a perm point of willpower to do something like this.

Look, all in all, I want one thing - I want there to exist a Level 3 Quantum 4 or 5 power that allows a nova to have some control over biological life in the vein of Elemental Mastery and Anima.

There's several ways to do this.

1) Elemental Mastery: Plants.

2) Some sort of Bio-equiv of Molecular Mastery (the animation tech is already used by Animal/Plant Mastery), and you could take some of the techniques from Bio-manip (Form Manip requiring a perm willpower point for perm changes would limit it's abusiveness, Growth, Damage one target, etc).

3) Break it down into separate theme-related powers. Form Manipulation could be it's own level 3 Q5 power (Shapeshift other), Healing, Poison, Animal/Plant-Mastery, etc.

4) Keep Bio-manip at Q6.

5) Just drop Bio-manip to Q5... although if you do this I'd suggest reserving it to NPC use.

6) Drop Bio-manip to Q5 and let anyone take it... but also increase the costs somehow. Temp willpower point to use any technique, level of Bashing damage to use any technique, something like that.

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Re: Mindscaping, glancing at it, the thing seems rather broken. Or, to be specific, Wipe Landscape is broken. It uses the same dice pool as Mental Blast, only all you need is a single net sux to totally incapacitate any opponent. And unlike Mental Blast, it isn't even subject to Psychic Shield soak. Not to mention, by my reading, anyone so attacked would then get no resistance rolls against any other mental power for the duration.

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Alex Green,

I very much like the idea of creating an Elemental Mastery: Plants power or an Elemental Mastery: Animal power, or heck, even an Elemental Mastery: Life power (though that would have some restrictions on what it can do, though Life is pretty much like Earth or Air in that it is omnipresent so its not that big of a deal).

Now I would just need to go through the various techniques that exist and see which ones could be adopted to a biological sort of power. For example, I cannot see Propel or Movement, unless you allow things like "I grow Wings to fly" sort of power while using the regular technique for a rules basis. So out of all your options I like this one the most, I always did like the idea of making it a form of Elemental Mastery or Molecular Mastery or Entropy Mastery or whatever other Mastery power you wish to use to use to create it.

Though I might call it something like Elemental Anima: Life and make it so that it can just manipulate existing life, rather than create new life out of nothing but pure quantum energy.

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Re: Mindscaping, glancing at it, the thing seems rather broken. Or, to be specific, Wipe Landscape is broken. It uses the same dice pool as Mental Blast, only all you need is a single net sux to totally incapacitate any opponent. And unlike Mental Blast, it isn't even subject to Psychic Shield soak. Not to mention, by my reading, anyone so attacked would then get no resistance rolls against any other mental power for the duration.

Yeah, sure looks that way. I've never used it in a game except as a background type thing that happened to some NPCs. Any reccomendations on fixing it?

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Maybe have it drain willpower dots, with a complete wipe happening if its reduced to 0?

My thing is, I don't really believe permanent transformations, particularly to novas, should be possible with a level 3 power. The entire Mindscaping power suite is centered around exactly that, and requiring a perm willpower expenditure doesn't really balance it. After all, a lot of the tricks in the suite can basically defeat an enemy with a single net sux, and then you can spend a single willpower dot to transform them into a permanent ally.

I tend to think 'permanent' brainwashing and total personality rewrites should be the province of either extremely high end powers ( like Consciousness Supremacy, or a level 4 power that does this and this only ), or else of extended efforts of alteration, using multiple telepathic and mega social powers in concert.

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My personal opinion is that doing a permanent change to someone's mind, nova or not, should be just as hard as killing them by transforming them into dust, which is entirely doable with Disentegrate.

Either way they are just as dead for all intents and purposes. Both powers have useful, even constructive applications, but as far as I'm concerned it's just another way of saying "you're dead". ::biggrin

Now, I do not think that total Mindwipes should be a small catagory of a larger power, it should be a power in it's own right with mental re-construction easily being handled by Telepathy (creating/altering memories).

But you have to look at the end effect; doing a total wipe of someone's mind kills that person as an entity just as surely as reducing their body to dust. You can resist this by having a high Willpower, Psychic Shield, Invulnerability: Mental, Compartmentalized Mind, etc. These measure are similar to ones taken to resist agg damage and I would consider a total mindwipe to be similar to aggravated damage as far as making rules for doing it goes. Aggravated damage is not a level 4 ability, in the right circumstances it can be level 2.

Making this a level 4 or even a level 5 power is far too much. As an example; Consciousness Supremacy can alter memories and mental processes on a global scale, erasing one mind is piddly stuff compared to that.

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As a note, I do not claim ownership of the below power, that is why its in quotes. I found this power on this site.

But would this be a possible method of operation that you think might be balanced?

Biomolecular Control

Level: 3

Quantum Minimum: 5

Dice Pool: Variable

Range: Touch

Area: Variable

Duration: Variable

Effect: Variable

Multiple Actions: Yes

Description: This exceedingly rare power allows the nova to control the very building blocks of life itself. Unlike Biomanipulation, Biomolecular control does not create gross changes in a target's condition; similarly, it does not operate by virtue of the nova's whim alone. Rather, it is a very precise, extremely potent power which has potentially earth-shattering implications.

Players need a fair amount of knowledge about genetics to use this power effectively, for it deals with control over the expression of genes and the effects this control has on the biological processes of the organism in question. It is entirely possible to create new forms of life with this power, living things which can survive, and reproduce, and go on about their business entirely independently of the nova.

As with Elemental Anima, Biomolecular control provides a list of techniques, and characters may master one technique per dot in Biomolecular control. Characters may attempt to use techniques they haven't mastered, but the players must pay double cost and roll against a difficulty penalty of one.

Characters may choose from the techniques listed here or make up their own, with the Storyteller's permission and approval.

Genetic Mapping

Dice Pool: Intelligence + Biomolecular Control

Range: Touch

Area: One individual

Duration: Permanent

This technique allows the nova to map an organism's genome in a matter of hours, learning exactly how and why that organism ticks. This information is essential to the use of all other Biomolecular Control techniques, and as such is a free technique.

Block

Dice Pool: Intelligence + Biomolecular Control

Range: Touch

Area: One individual

Duration: One turn/success

This technique allows the nova to block the expression of a particular gene in an individual, thus resulting in effects ranging from the trivial to the catastrophic. Success on an Intelligence + Biomolecular Control roll essentially stops any one biological process in the target for a number of turns equal to the number of successes rolled. This may result in paralysis, suffocation, stroke, heart attack, or any of a number of other mild to severe conditions.

Note that successful use of this power requires full access to a genetic map of the organism in question; this means that while humans are easy prey, other novas are another story. In game terms, the character needs a tissue sample from the target, as well as several hours to study it, before this technique can even be attempted. Novas with the Adaptability enhancement are immune to this power, as are those who can Bodymorph or similarly alter the material structure of their body.

The nova may also attempt to block access to a target's powers using this technique, provided the above prerequisites are met; treat this effect as a variation of the Dormancy background, which lasts one turn per success rolled.

Splice

Dice Pool: Intelligence + Biomolecular Control

Range: Touch

Area: One individual

Duration: Permanent

This power may be used to splice one organism's genetic material with that of another. This technique is somewhat deceptive, in that it does not allow the character to simply swap traits of different organisms. This means the power isn't much use on fully mature organisms. The character could, for example, transplant skin samples from different races of humans, but she couldn't change their actual ethnicities. She could, however, ensure that their children are of a different ethnicity, by making the appropriate alterations in the target's sex cells. Similarly, she could create a new life form by splicing out some traits and splicing in others.

Sylvia Aulsebrook has used this technique to enhance the intelligence of bottlenose dolphins; essentially, she took the genes for cognitive development found in humans and implanted them in the dolphin genome at the appropriate junctures, resulting in very bright dolphins.

This technique can be used to give a target's offspring the genetic potential to become a nova. It cannot, however, ensure that that individual will erupt, or dictate anything whatsoever about said individual's powers. This aspect of the Splice technique is a closely guarded secret; if it ever got out, the results would be . . . interesting, to say the least.

Stimulate

Dice Pool: Intelligence + Biomolecular Control

Range: Touch

Area: One individual

Duration: One turn/success

The nova using this technique can stimulate any gene in the target's body. She may, for example, stimulate the release of adrenaline, epinephrine, neurotransmitters, or any other mundane substance she cares to name. This can result in everything from orgasms to immense physical strength (in baseline terms, anyway), and from increased mental acuity to behavior-affecting pheromones. In game terms, for every success rolled on an Intelligence + Biomolecular Control roll the character may add one automatic success to any attribute roll made by the target, to the limit of the rating of the relevant attribute. This does not apply to Mega-Attributes, as they are powered by the M-R node and not conventional physical processes.

,,
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My personal opinion is that doing a permanent change to someone's mind, nova or not, should be just as hard as killing them by transforming them into dust, which is entirely doable with Disentegrate.

Either way they are just as dead for all intents and purposes. Both powers have useful, even constructive applications, but as far as I'm concerned it's just another way of saying "you're dead". ::biggrin

Now, I do not think that total Mindwipes should be a small catagory of a larger power, it should be a power in it's own right with mental re-construction easily being handled by Telepathy (creating/altering memories).

But you have to look at the end effect; doing a total wipe of someone's mind kills that person as an entity just as surely as reducing their body to dust. You can resist this by having a high Willpower, Psychic Shield, Invulnerability: Mental, Compartmentalized Mind, etc. These measure are similar to ones taken to resist agg damage and I would consider a total mindwipe to be similar to aggravated damage as far as making rules for doing it goes. Aggravated damage is not a level 4 ability, in the right circumstances it can be level 2.

Making this a level 4 or even a level 5 power is far too much. As an example; Consciousness Supremacy can alter memories and mental processes on a global scale, erasing one mind is piddly stuff compared to that.

You have a point, save for two things:

1. Disintegrate can't turn you into a slave

2. It takes very little expenditure to hose Agg damage. A single dot of impervious armor, a single dot of an applicable invulnerability, or even a single enhancement ( Hardbody ). The mind wiping and personality rewrite, OTOH, is nowhere near as easy to stop.

Also, I wouldn't allow *personality* rewrites with just Telepathy. Memory rewrites, yes. However, unless you are an expert at brainwashing, the more extreme the memory rewrites, the quicker the victim will realize something is wrong ( or go insane, perhaps ).

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As a note, I do not claim ownership of the below power, that is why its in quotes. I found this power on this site.

But would this be a possible method of operation that you think might be balanced?

Not a bad idea, but those power slots definitely need some more detailed examples. As is, the mechanical effects are extremely vague.

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You have a point, save for two things:

1. Disintegrate can't turn you into a slave

True. However, unless you really don't expect much from a slave, neither can a mind wipe. ::biggrin

2. It takes very little expenditure to hose Agg damage. A single dot of impervious armor, a single dot of an applicable invulnerability, or even a single enhancement ( Hardbody ). The mind wiping and personality rewrite, OTOH, is nowhere near as easy to stop.

Also, I wouldn't allow *personality* rewrites with just Telepathy. Memory rewrites, yes. However, unless you are an expert at brainwashing, the more extreme the memory rewrites, the quicker the victim will realize something is wrong ( or go insane, perhaps ).

This actually touches on something else I've always thought; for what it does, Telepathy is undercosted and should be a level 3 power. It should default to being fairly undetectable in action unless you are doing something to someone actively and Telepathic Channeling should be an Extra for the powers that it normally effects rather than one BADASS Extra for Telepathy (I had a sick bastard in a game powermax his mental bolt to be burning and zot people from continents away, and he also had other fun with long distance Dominate and Mirage ::brick )

To build a personality? Yeah you should either know a lot about the mind or be one experienced mofo with Telepathy. This is not entry-level mind screwing.

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Thing is, the Mindscaping power as written, means that anyone able to inflict a Mindwipe, is also able to inflict a total rewrite. . . and someone already mindwiped, has zero defense. So, really, a single net sux of mindwipe pretty much does translate into "perma slave forever", unless the Mindscaper is incompetent or unlucky.

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Thing is, the Mindscaping power as written, means that anyone able to inflict a Mindwipe, is also able to inflict a total rewrite. . . and someone already mindwiped, has zero defense. So, really, a single net sux of mindwipe pretty much does translate into "perma slave forever", unless the Mindscaper is incompetent or unlucky.

You have a good point, which is why if I had been writing it I would have gone a different route.

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As for my logic on why I'd make such a level 4 power. . .

Okay, Consciousness Supremacy, a level 5 power, allows as one of its techniques making people into will-less zombies. Granted, it does this on a planetary scale.

Taking that single effect out of the suite, generally would make it a power one level lower. However, to an extent the area of Consciousness Supremacy is an aspect of its level, sort of as if it had Area stuck on a weaker effect, and benefiting from the mastery inherent to the concept. So, taking the same effect, and dialing it down to one victim at a time, would be roughly appropriate.

As part of rebuilding it into a new and separate power, I would add in "rewriting personality and memories of someone so de-willed", as technically, separate powers should be more potent than their suite technique version. So, something along the lines of "once the victim hits 0 willpower, remaining successes can be spent rewriting their persona." I'd have to give further thought on the benchmarks, but something like "1 sux erases some or all memories, 1 sux to add or change memories, 1 sux for general personality alteration, 1 sux for changed Motivation, and 1 sux for every 2 WP of the new persona."

Note that, you could apply a whole bunch of weaknesses, like extra time and extended resistance, that could reduce it to a level 3 power. . . but would then be roughly equivalent to the rules on brainwashing from Forceful Personalities. This is intentional on my part.

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There is another reason I don't consider the ability to wipe/reprogram minds to be a big deal is that when you get right down to it, it's like having the power to make puppies, kittens and babies explode like bombs with a glance; sure, you got an almost limitless source of explosives, but your're also making babies kittens and puppies explode! ::biggrin

You would seriously be asking for it with a power like that and it's the same thing with mindwiping and reprogramming; being the guy who can do that is like signing up for an asswhuppin'

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Eh, I don't consider that a good reason for power level assignment, anymore than an argument that Disintegrate should be only level 2, because its *only* good for killing people. After all, the main consequence of that would be, the only people to have and use a horrible power, would be those not bothered by it being horrible. And they won't find it any limitation, more so than just being themselves would be.

( btw, this is why I think Agg Mental Blast should not add Quantum in autosux )

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