Aberrant: Quantum Zero - QZ - game mechanics

[malkboy]

Angry English speaking name who's name is Alex Green...

[ezekiel]

I mean that its looking for a needle in a haystack. Do you always think about your name? I don't think that's a surface thought. Neither is english and even if in Korea I don't think English is rare to the point of pinpointing one person. Even so, it means finding the english speaking mind amongst millions. Who gives a cahoot if you're unique or not, unless for some reason your mind has a mega-echo or something (and pain or fear isn't a mega-echo. I'm sure there's lots of pain in Hospitals), it should be very difficult to find in the hubub of thought. If the telepath is very familiar with someone, that's different. Finding your spouse or child should be easier than finding some stranger you barely met.

[ezekiel]

Might be easier if the Telepath had Mega-Wits to sift through all the info...

[Alex Green]

Even so, it means finding the english speaking mind amongst millions....If the telepath is very familiar with someone, that's different. Finding your spouse or child should be easier than finding some stranger you barely met.

You'd think so, but in Aberrant the relative problem is distance, not number of minds.

Considering none of us are telepaths, I don't know if we can say if these rules make sense or not.

Let's say you are looking for a rock in a field of rocks. That sounds really hard. Now let's say it is painted bright pink. Suddenly finding it became a function of distance, not how many rocks are next to it. But how do we describe that to someone who can't see?

[ezekiel]

What if instead of a field of Rocks its a field of ping pong balls all different colors. Finding the bright pink one might be difficult. But...do a test. Grab a peanut (with the shell) Study it, give it a name (like Herbert), feel it, put it back in the bag. Mix it all together.

If you empty the bag on the floor I can almost guarantee (have tried this in psych class) that you'll find your peanut. Why? Because YOU learned about it, its attributes, felt it, knew it. Try finding MY peanut after I describe it to you...good luck.

I don't have my book with me but I think it did allude to the fact that surface minds were scanned and the more specific the search the harder it could get...not sure. I might be mixing up with the Trinity rules.

[malkboy]

I don't have my book with me but I think it did allude to the fact that surface minds were scanned and the more specific the search the harder it could get...not sure. I might be mixing up with the Trinity rules.

Actually a bit the opposite for searching for a mind. The less specific the harder it is. You are searching out for a certain mental signature and it's easier to sort with more specific information. For instance, Ian knew that he was looking for The Dark Matter Destroyer, someone in North Korea, a nova, and all the other little bits of info provided for him. The problem is.. distance..

[knave]

::biggrin It'd be criminal for the Stranger's to be in the Elites thread quoting DKR and not do some friendly sparring with Guy - another Batman fan. ::devilangel

[Archer21]

I'm pretty sure Guy would win that bout...be interesting to see though! ::ninja ::tongue

[Alex Green]

The problem with information gained from different primary senses, it is hard to make sense of them.

I seem to remember a news article that suggested that dollfins have something like a three dimentional x-ray vision by combining sonar with sight.

[Bahamut810]

Thats Dolphins.

And Andy would win that fight by wrapping the two up metal structures that would be around and then be easily KO'd by the 10 year old little girl that would come up and twist his nipple

[knave]

I'm pretty sure Guy would win that bout...be interesting to see though!

Don't know about that. Guy's been pretty lucky so far. I really thought he was a goner when the electro boy nova took over the building.

Though it is strange how massive amounts of that kind of 'power suite' doesn't always translate into combat effectiveness.

And Andy would win that fight by wrapping the two up metal structures that would be around and then be easily KO'd by the 10 year old little girl that would come up and twist his nipple

Yeah, try that and I'll tell Bruce on ya ::biggrin ::wink

[ProfPotts]

I still think that the fact that Ian could find Alex without ever having met the guy halfway across the globe is a bit much...

This from the guy who's character can create a null-gravity field that could lift anything... ::tongue

In any case, Malkboy & the others were clever in their attempt to locate DMD. Ian didn't just try to find the guy, he quizzed those who knew him on what sort of thing he should be looking for, got a general idea of the guy's location - all of which enabled the attempt in the first place. Even so, the dice roll I got for the attempt was a very lucky high roll, & contact was only established by the narrowest of margins. If Alex hadn't stated that DMD wasn't resisting, but was in fact responding to the attempt, then it would have failed (unless I'd have rolled really poorly for his Willpower - even a single success would have fouled the attempt). There's no way that Ian could, for example, do the same thing to locate Divis Mal.

As for how Telepathy works - like all Nova powers (& unlike Psi powers in Trinity), it varies from Nova to Nova. PathFinder & Ian both have Telepathy, & their powers both use the same basic game mechanics, but both would 'visualise' their powers differently.

[malkboy]

In any case, Malkboy & the others were clever in their attempt to locate DMD. Ian didn't just try to find the guy, he quizzed those who knew him on what sort of thing he should be looking for, got a general idea of the guy's location - all of which enabled the attempt in the first place. Even so, the dice roll I got for the attempt was a very lucky high roll, & contact was only established by the narrowest of margins. If Alex hadn't stated that DMD wasn't resisting, but was in fact responding to the attempt, then it would have failed (unless I'd have rolled really poorly for his Willpower - even a single success would have fouled the attempt). There's no way that Ian could, for example, do the same thing to locate Divis Mal.

In fact.. Ian didn't expect it to work.. nor did I personally. He just had to give Alex a chance... Korea+Elite+Captured=Bad thing for Elite. But I'm glad it did work. Maybe now Alex can rejoin the rest of the world.

[ezekiel]

This from the guy who's character can create a null-gravity field that could lift anything...

Didn't know we were comparing powers...

I still think it should be harder to find someone in a crowd than in the middle of nowhere.

[Chieftain]

Didn't know we were comparing powers...

I still think it should be harder to find someone in a crowd than in the middle of nowhere.

Oh, most definately, but I think in this case it would actualy make it easier.

Alex is the focus for at least a good few hundred people at the momment, Thus it is that their minds would naturaly dwell on thoughts about him. Fear, anger, agression, of the dark side these are, but sometimes in order to see the waves you have to step away from the sea.

Am i making any sense here?

Chieftain

[ezekiel]

actually, you are. Quite a bit. That's a much better argument than "But the book only takes 'distance' into consideration!"

Hmm...very good one Chieftain.

[knave]

Funny - I tend to associate that sort of reasoning more with Psi rather than Quantum powers.

[ProfPotts]

In Champions the power Mind Scan has a difficulty based on the number of minds, not distance, & it's a reasonable idea. In Trinity difficulty is based on familiarity with the target mind. But in Aberrant Telepathy can work in any number of different ways - there's no one 'correct' way to define that power any more than there is to define a Quantum Bolt. One Telepath may find minds by flicking through a mental phone book until the person's name crops up, another may search for a distinct electromagnetic signature or a specific Quantum reasonance, another may lay out a Tarot pattern - none is more correct than the others.

I'll say it again - Ian's Telepathic contact with Alex was not an easy task - it was a well thought-out execution of a power combined with a lucky high roll. That's the way things tend to go in these games. Should I have denied the guy the use of that aspect of his powers?

Only Ian (the character) would know for sure how his powers manifested. Malkboy (the player) & I (the ST) both have an idea as well - based on his chargen & our discussions on his background. You can't just state that 'Telepathy should work in this one way...', unless you're refering to the game mechanics that are used - & the game mechanics allowed Ian's use of the power. Description / special effects-wise the effect was in Ian's head, so no-one else needs to know, right?

According to the power text a Nova telepath can just find 'the nearest UN official', with no more specific person in mind than that. Finding a specific guy who's 'mind' has been described as far as his associates can know it, who's general location is known, & who really wants to be found can't be that much more implausible, can it?

I mentioned the null-gravity power to make the point that this is Aberrant - the powers that Novas have access to are far more powerful than in other games. If that's true for one power, it true for others as well. The ability to locate a mind at a range of several thousand miles is hardly any more abusive than the ability to lift infinite weight, or to teleport to Mercury, or to reverse the aging process, or to destroy New York with an instant storm of Biblical proportions - all of which are things that starting level Aberrant characters could easily do.

"But the book only takes 'distance' into consideration!"

Neither the book nor I only take distance into consideration. As stated before, Ian wouldn't have even been allowed the attempt if he hadn't of gone to the effort of finding out all he could about the mind he was looking for & the place to find it. Yes, a more familiar mind would be easier to find - it's just that a not so familiar mind, in this case, wasn't impossible to find.

[knave]

::baaa ::baaa

Lol - next time I make an abbie I'm definitely going to go for a city leveller ::tongue

[ProfPotts]

Just take Weather Control at a high level - the only power that has a damaging Technique that starts with a radius measured in kilometers. ::blink

[Hence Thor... ::wink ]

[Ayre el KaBeer]

I prefer the idea of a maxed out Momentum Control to extend its effects, earth go one way... now another ::wacko

[knave]

This is kinda what I was saying earlier. You can make a character who is massively powerful, but who is made from the same number of points as someone who doesn't seem very powerful at all. A Thor vs a Ghost or a Samurai type. Thing is - you can have that percieved massive power and still be on equal terms when it comes to the crunch.

On the other hand someone mostly normal could come up against a DMD. Game over man... ::tongue

[ProfPotts]

That's entirely correct - the suite powers especially can be devestating in a way that effects baselines & the world as a whole, but fall down on raw dice pool when faced with other Novas. Thor can level a city, sure, but that same power would be hard-pressed to scratch most Novas, & certainly any Elite worth the name. Good job he's got Mega-Strength too... ::wink

[malkboy]

I prefer the idea of a maxed out Momentum Control to extend its effects, earth go one way... now another  ::wacko

You have only need to stop the earth.. Everyone else will fall off the instant that happens.. as well as the atmosphere etc etc..

[malkboy]

Thus it all goes to show you.. It's not what you've got.. and how much of it.. but it's all in how you can use it. Think of Genie, SemiPhenominal Cosmic super powers... itty bitty living space.

[Ayre el KaBeer]

You have only need to stop the earth.. Everyone else will fall off the instant that happens.. as well as the atmosphere etc etc..

You have no sense of style, sir.

[malkboy]

You have no sense of style, sir.

Oh I don't know.. Let's say our nova turned the earth into going the other direction suddenly... Everyone touching ground if flung instantly probably some fair distance (lets not even think about damage dice.... your talking an appx. 2000 mph hit. 1000 mph for the direction you were going.. 1000 mph for the way you suddenly are going.) Every known above ground building falls (not sure if below ground will suffer as bad because alot of thier structure is in a more.. secure area)

You'd think that people in planes would be safe but they're not. Not only are they going to have to hope nothing hits the plane, but they have enough gas to get to where they are going or that they don't have sudden problems with jetstreams changing etc etc etc..

[Ayre el KaBeer]

No disagreements to the effects, it just doesn't have that... Oh I don't know... SWIIIISHHHH about it. ::biggrin

[ProfPotts]

Hmmm... Momentum Rotation has an area of (Quantum + power rating) x2 meters. That's a maximum of 20 meter radius for a starting level character. With a maximum of 5 'Max' successes he can double that area 5 times, or, in other words, multiply it by x32. That's a total radius of 640 meters, or a diameter of 1,280 meters. Very impressive, but not really enough to snag the planet... ::tongue

Of course, with Mastery & Quantum 6+ the world's your oyster (literally if you Mastered enough Molecular Manipulation... ::wink ), but that goes for pretty much any power.

Now, with the Weather Alteration Technique you can effect an area of (Quantum + power rating) x5 kilometers. That's a maximum of a 50 kilometer radius for a starting level character. With that same 'Max' roll & x32 area, such a Nova could effect the weather over a 1,600 kilometer radius, or 3,200 kilometer diameter area. 10 levels of Bashing damage per turn, & one heck of an impact on the global weather patterns. A starting level character could do that.

Which would you prefer? ::devil

Of course - if style if your bag, just take Quantum Construct, move to Tokyo, & destroy the city with a new giant monster each week... ::blink

[Ayre el KaBeer]

Of course - if style if your bag, just take Quantum Construct, move to Tokyo, & destroy the city with a new giant monster each week... ::blink

Bwahahaha!!! ::smiley1

[Alex Green]

That "Max" roll only works for the next turn. And the big flaw with Weather Control is that you have to work with the weather available.

If there are clear skys, it takes lots of succ to get that storm rolling (like 5+). And this technique is linked to Intellegence. That is a problem for most combat type characters.

On the other hand, if you are attacking a city, you could just wait for a rainy day and then attack.

[Chieftain]

Pointing to an area on the map he adds "According to Ian, he's somewhere around here."

Oh for the days of a Charecter with a descent luck power.

"Yes we need to know where the Terragen are taking poor Angie."

"I can help. Let me have a go"

[Everybody watches in amazement as The Harvey "Huckster" Julians closes his eyes and points out the Terragen base on the map.]

"Gee, since when has T2M devolved to playing Pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey?"

[knave]

Of course - if style if your bag, just take Quantum Construct, move to Tokyo, & destroy the city with a new giant monster each week... ::blink 

bugger... ::crazy

[Ayre el KaBeer]

So what calibre shells they using against DMD?

[knave]

BFC.

[ezekiel]

I mentioned the null-gravity power to make the point that this is Aberrant - the powers that Novas have access to are far more powerful than in other games. If that's true for one power, it true for others as well. The ability to locate a mind at a range of several thousand miles is hardly any more abusive than the ability to lift infinite weight, or to teleport to Mercury, or to reverse the aging process, or to destroy New York with an instant storm of Biblical proportions - all of which are things that starting level Aberrant characters could easily do.

QUOTE 

"But the book only takes 'distance' into consideration!"

Neither the book nor I only take distance into consideration. As stated before, Ian wouldn't have even been allowed the attempt if he hadn't of gone to the effort of finding out all he could about the mind he was looking for & the place to find it. Yes, a more familiar mind would be easier to find - it's just that a not so familiar mind, in this case, wasn't impossible to find.

I'm not thinking in terms of abusive or not. I see telepathy as the power to read minds. The distance of 20 000 Km+ is in itself remarkable and much more powerful than in most other games. I maintain that finding a specific mind should be more difficult amongst the many than with the few. Chieftain's take on it was very good, its logical that finding the center of attention somewhere should be much easier. Many minds focused on the same thing would probably raise the attention of someone surfing over the surface thoughts of millions of minds. Finding someone based on somebody's description of him halfway across the globe should be nigh impossible. Had Ian probed Ghost and Vinnie I guess he'd have a near equivalent of "familiarity" with the subject, he'd know what to look for. If not its much like my peanut example.

Still, different storytellers = different takes on it

[knave]

"Ah, Count Orzaiz. A pleasure to speak with you again.

Lol - gotta love those name droppers ::biggrin

[ezekiel]

(because as we know, a husband can kill his wife in that part of the world without worry of retribution).

Someone's been spoonfed some propaganda lately... ::confused

[Asbjørn]

Had Ian probed Ghost and Vinnie I guess he'd have a near equivalent of "familiarity" with the subject, he'd know what to look for.

Had Ian probed Vinnie's mind and he found out about it, his would probably have been the shortest DeVries carreer in history. But that's another story...

[malkboy]

Not even a had. Vinnie said no, Ian respects his team mates. **** off the guy who can pop up from thin air stab you in the back and pop out before you finish eating your cheerios in the morning.. no thanks.