Some additional Campaign and House Rules:

Hi All:

Quote: "Q: Should we change Multipower and VPP so that it's the Real
Points that have to fit into the Framework's reserve/pool?

Steve's Thoughts: I'm a little leery of this idea, but at least willing to consider it. I played in many games that used this as a house rule for years and never had much trouble with it, but there is obvious potential for imbalancing a game. The upside is that currently you can't build a "nova blast," or similar really-powerful-but-highly-restricted powers, in a Framework, and with this rules change you could. And if we institute this change, perhaps a similar change could be recommended for campaigns with point ceilings, where again no matter how Limited a power is it can't exceed a certain Active Point threshold." End Quote

In my game, the cap will continue to be 45 active points for powers in a pool that contain effects generally discernible as spells, 90 for "achievable" scientific powers. That 90 will stay in place longer than the 45, as magic "grows" in the world, and is easier to make leaps and bounds with, than technology, eventually they will even out. Also, 60 active points for "Techno Magic"
(Either that, or I'll have to design some sort of balancing bonus for those of the party who took part in the magic system which tends to be very restrictive and require more investment than the technology system.)

This being said, I also move that the power aid, cost only 5 points per 1d6 of aid, and we discuss the ramifications of any advantages or limitations on it, but that it only exist in magical capacity, or technomagical capacity.

I also move that we call magical gadgeteers, Technomagical Adepts for now, unless something else is arrived upon by consensus in Sunday's game or before.

Another house Rule, please note, my interpretation will be below the paraphrased quote:
"Shtick!

Shtick is a stop sign talent and requires GM approval. The scope of the shtick is defined by defining a word or phrase punctuated with an exclamation point. It must have an exclamation point. Mechanically, it doesn't work without an exclamation point!

That said, Shtick! replaces all skills that fall under its defined (agreed upon) purview. Shtick! has three categories:

1. Expertise Shtick!
2. Competence Shtick!
3. Combat Shtick! (Not allowed)


Expertise Shtick!

Expertise oriented shtick represents a character whose shtick normally rests in what the hero system currently defines as background skills. They may make use of a small number or regular skills such as Research, Instruction, or Inventor, but in general, the character generally leverages background skills with it. Some examples would be Tony Stark, Reed Richards, Dr. Destroyer, and their like. They seem able to analyse just about anything. The Shtick! could be defined as Science! or Weird Science! or Amazing Inventions! or whatnot. Another would be a fantasy character with Bookworm! or Sage! Or, a Hoshi Sato from Enterprise might be built as Linguist!

Competence Shtick!

Competence Shtick! represents a character whose shtick primarily leverages adventuring skills, but is occassionally supported by background skills. For instance, this could be "Creepy Bald Death Brother Dude!" or "Vamp!" or "Thief!"

Shtick! Cost

Shtick! costs 20 points for an 11- roll.
--Expertise oriented Shtick! costs 3 points per +1 to the base roll.
--Competence oriented Shtick! costs 4 points per +1 to the base roll.
--Combat Shtick! costs 5 points per +1 to the base roll. (Not allowed)

Alternate Cost Schema:

Another way to cost it is to have skills use the 9+(Characteristic/5) formula and charge for each +1 to whatever base skill roll comes up. This, however, tends to make Shtick! cheaper. In of itself that is neither good nor bad. Its something you have to guage for the game and points available.

Skill Maxima:

Ordinarily Shtick! should not be subject to Skill Maxima. However, I think it would be prudent for characters with more than one Shtick! (if you were to allow that at all) to only have one Shtick! ignore the maxima. You could, of course, impose the maxima on shtick as well (this would break the combat shtick schema unless you use a skill driven combat system - just so you know)." End Quote

I have an imposed skill maxima which I have not yet disclosed, but nothing can be bought to 17- or better, in our campaign, there needs to be at least one point of fail, and one point of epic fail. IE:
Buying things to 16- is fine... a little incredible, but fine. that allows a person to fail when rolling at 17, and to critically fumble at 18.

Right now humans will be the only race allowed to buy Shtick, and they will only be able to buy it with acquired experience points. I've been rolling around the idea in my head, of how I'm going to distribute "loot and xp" for adventuring.

I may distribute points that are usable only to increase skill potency of skills that were used during the adventure/characteristics that sufered heavy burden and exercise during the adventure. Of course, that might be how I balance the magical system, whereas technology
will have a maxima that will grow slowly, Magic will meet, but not exceed that maxima, in time, and perhaps an adventurer who spends all their time learning/studying during an adventure, will get points to spend on their magic pool and spellbook(Imagine how much learning a character that can hear everything does...)

I think a "You exercised it, it might gain experience" for things that make sense to either get better with practice, or grow due to use (magical capacity if one runs out of 'mana' repeatedly using all their powers, health after being beaten to death and recovering repeatedly, strength after going to the gym for a month...) policy will be the best way to go to keep this campaign balanced for a long time, and that's why I see Shtick as a way to help with that.

If a character chooses to save up "xp only spendable on skills/talents" over the course of 5-20 adventures, and buy a shtick roll that allows them competence at everything their character "should" be good at, and eventually buys enough points for their character to be an expert/the best at their own shtick, that makes perfect sense to me, and of course, I may require a character at that point to buy a reputation as a dogooder, or a thief, or the world's
best gadgeteer, or the world's most destructive force...


Multiple Power Attacks, Combat Maneuvers, Rapid Fire (Autofire) Sweep Attacks, etc:

These will impose a -2 OCV penalty for each additional power in the attack, as well as take the full phase (no movement allowed) and halve the caster's DCV until their next phase in which they do not perform another multiple power attack.

So while there may be giant Mecha that can launch a Macross Missile Massacre, there will be penalties... uh, if the PCs would survive such a thing anyway.

I'm going to ask for some help to create a movement power, something along the lines of unimpeded velocity... Basically if something the size of a fortress is rolling over a jungle smashing down trees, it shouldn't have to stop each phase, so there will be maybe a movement power of 1-5 inches buyable as continuous, limitation on turn radius(can only use it to move forward) etcetera.

Therefore, anyone relegated to melee range when beating on a giant mechanized monster may want to y'know, stand to the side, or back of the creature, or immediately be knocked prone "between segments" and stuck underneath the treads of the giant tank or whatnot. Under said giant monstrosity, they will take gravity based crushing damage.

I'll be adding campaign rules, unique powers, house rules, setting enhancements, limits, and such here as I can remember them and as I create them.

Also, anyone who has mapping utilities, large tagboard that erasable markers work nicely on... anything, would be appreciated, for now I'll be looking on ebay for something like tile sets or a soft hex map or use transparencies, or whatever I can think of.

Please feel free to comment on any post, especially the settings post with any ideas for the world settings, and DEFINITELY post anything we've spoken about in person regarding the setting, that I have not declared here in text, so that I remember it, and we don't need to have some sort of argument during a game session about whether or not invisible pink unicorns exist or not.