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In or Out of the Ballpark?


Hero Lad

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Player NameHero Lad
Character NameMyth
Power Level: 10 (148/150PP)
Trade-Offs:  None
Unspent Power Points: 2
Progress To Bronze Status: 0/30

In BriefA low profile hero working to help others but possibly leaving behind the question: Real or Myth?

ResidenceLantern Hill
Base of OperationsFreedom City
Catchphrase: Wazzat?

Alternate IdentityIan Cantnor
Identity: Secret
Birthplace: Rosemont, VA
OccupationProgram Director, Piedmont Cultural Society
Affiliations: None.
FamilyRoss Cantnor (Father), Lily Cantnor (Mother), Asia Cantnor (Sister)

 

Description:
Age:  25 (DoB:  April 1, 1990)
Apparent Age: 25
Gender: Male
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 190 lbs.
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Black

Ian prefers to dress in line with his nostalgia. This usually means suit and tie, often of the gray double-breasted and pinstripe variety, but often more colorfully too. He is rarely without his Fedora or his rather elegant walking stick. He carries himself with a certain sense of grace and presence.

Power Descriptions:

Magic/Dimensional Energy known as MythFire (Hellfire Control variant). It is often subtle (invisible) to keep the “fog of war” element going. Although sometimes, it is allowed to be seen in glimpses. When this is done, it appears as a purple energy.

History:

Ian is a Golden Age nostalgist, but not just for heroes or that time period, but for all of yesteryear. Because of elements he sees as important. Being a gentleman. Having a sense of honor and duty. Chivalry. Good worth ethic. Opposing tyrrany. All the "good" elements man has displayed through history. Even to the point of legends or myth. King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table? Perfect example for him. 


He became a frequent member and sometime co-moderator of many internet sites relating to his hobby. He evern tailored his college degree to work in a field that gave him more opportunities to explore heroes, and history, and culture, and myth.


So when he was offered a position as Program Director for the Piedmont Cultural Society, a private club for nostalgia enthusiasts, he jumped at the chance. Especially when he discoveredhe’d be moving to Freedom City, home of heroes.


His life would be forever changed the night he was walking home late after helping authenticate and value a member’s collection of items about to be placed on auction. His attention was drawn to strange sounds and elusive lights that seemed to flicker, vanish, and re-appear somewhere else. The sounds were muffled, but he thought he heard music and laughter. A strong wind came up suddenly and he felt a pain in his head and then things went black.


A police officer found him lying against the curb and a large tree branch nearby. The officer but the pieces together and determined Ian must have been struck by the branch when the wind picked up and was delivered a blow to his noggin that knocked him out. A quick trip to the hospital found no major injuries and Ian returned home.


Only to be overcome with a memory of a strange dream he had that was something like A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court mixed with Celtic Fae Legends and Alice in Wonderland.


Ian would later discover that his stange dream and the others to follow were actually experiences in another dimension. One where myth and legend abounded in truth. He had been chosen to carry the torch of heroics in this realm, and given the power to do just that, a magical interdimensional energy that he calls “MythFire.”


Personality & Motivation:

Ian Cantnor feels as if he has the world on a string. He has the perfect job in a nearly-perfect city, and a perfect gift, his powers. So he’s always smiling at those he meets or offering a friendly wave as he strolls along. He likes to think of himself as a “man-about-town” as he takes regular walks through the different parts of Freedom City.


He’s also willing to make a friend where he can, whether it is other fans of nostalgia, the market keeper who always has the freshest produce, or the older gents who gather at the park to swap stories.


As Myth, he likes to keep himself as secretive as possible, but he can’t let that keep him from the real objective. He gets to be a hero and help out others and helping comes first, whether it is another hero or a citizen. Myth likes to lend his support when and where he can.


Powers & Tactics:

Myth prefers to work as invisibly and silently as possible, only allowing glimpses of himself and his power when needed and attempting to use it as a “fog of war” tactic against his foes. When he can’t be completely hidden, he acts as a trickster character, keeping opponents off-guard with taunts and tweaks. 


Alongside other heroes, he happily falls in line with their powers and strategies and acts as a utility team member to help as best he can. 

 

Complications:
Identity: Secret
Responsibility: Job
 
Abilities: 4+4+8+6+4+4 = 30PP 
STR 14 (+2) 
DEX 14 (+2) 
CON 18 (+4) 
INT 16 (+3) 
WIS 14 (+2) 
CHA 14 (+2)


Combat: 8 + 10 = 18PP
Initiative: +3
Attack: +10 Melee (+4 Base, +6 PF: Accurate 3), +10 Ranged(+4 Base, +6 PF: Accurate 3)
Grapple: +12
Defense: +10 (+5 Base, +10 Dodge Focus), +3 Flat-Footed
Knockback: 8

Saving Throws: 5 + 5 + 5 = 15PP
Toughness: +10 (+4 Con, +6 Protection)
Fortitude: +9 (+4 Con, +5)
Reflex: +7 (+2 Dex, +5)
Will: +7 (+2 Wis, +5)
 
Skills: 36R = 9PP  
Computers 4 (+6)
Diplomacy 4 (+6)
Disable Device 4 (+7)
Gather Info 4 (+6)
Knowledge (Streetwise) 4 (+7)
Notice 4 (+6)
Search 4 (+7)
Sense Motive 4 (+6)
Stealth 4 (+6)
 
Feats: 8PP 

Dodge Focus 5
Hide in Plain Sight 1
Jack of All Trades 1
Well Informed 1

Powers: 7 + 8 + 45 + 6 + 2 = 68PP


Flight 3 (50 MPH/500 feet per Move[active], Personal, Sustained, PF:Subtle) [7PP] 
Invisibility 2 (Concealment Visual [all])  (Free [Active], Personal, Sustained[8PP]


"MythFire" Array  (30 PP, PF: Alternate Powers 10 [10pp],PF: Affects Insubstantial [1pp], PF: Subtle [1pp] PF: Accurate 3 [3pp] ) [45PP] 

BE: Obscure 6 (4ppr=all sense types) (Standard, Ranged, Sustained) (PF:Affects Insubstantial ,PF: Subtle, PF: Accurate 3  ) [28PP] 
AP: (Damage) Blast 10 (Standard, Ranged, Instant, Saving Throw: Toughness)  (PF:Affects Insubstantial , PF: Subtle, PF: Accurate 3 ) [25PP] 
AP: Create Object 10 (Standard, Ranged, Sustained) (PF:Affects Insubstantial , PF: Subtle, PF: Accurate 3 ) [28PP] 
AP: Dazzle 6 (4ppr=all senses) (Standard, Ranged, Instant/Lasting ST:Reflex/Fortitude) (PF:Affects Insubstantial , PF: Subtle, PF: Accurate 3) [28PP] 
AP: Emotion Control 10 (Standard, Perception, Sustained/Lasting ST: Will [staged] ) (PF:Affects Insubstantial , PF: Subtle, PF: Accurate 3 ) [28PP] 
AP: Environmental Control 10 [visibility] (Standard, Perception, Sustained ST: Will [staged], Extra: Selective Attack) (PF:Affects Insubstantial , PF: Subtle, PF: Accurate 3 )[25PP] (100 foot range)
AP: Healing 9 (Alteration, Touch, Full, Instant, ST: Fortitude [harmless])( PF:Persitent, PF:Regrowth, PF: Subtle)[22PP]

AP: Nauseate 10 (Standard, Touch, Instant/Lasting ST: Fortitude [satged])(PF:Affects Insubstantial ,  PF: Subtle, PF: Accurate 3 ) [29PP] 
AP: Soul Blast 8 (Standard, Ranged Will Damage, Instant, Saving Throw: Will)  (PF:Affects Insubstantial , PF: Subtle, PF: Accurate 3 ) [17PP rank.)
AP: Strike 10  (Standard, Touch, Instant, Saving Throw: Toughness)  (PF:Affects Insubstantial , PF: Subtle, PF: Accurate 3 ) [15PP] 
AP: Teleport 10 (Move: Active, Personal, Instant, Saving Throw: Reflex [harmless])  (PF:Affects Insubstantial , PF: Subtle, PF: Accurate 3 ) [25PP] ---carry up to 100 lbs. of additional mass a distance of (power rank x 100) feet as a move action.---

Protection 6 (Passive (none), Personal, Permanent, ) [6PP]

Silence 2 (Concealment Auditory[all]) (Free [Active], Personal, Sustained)  [2PP]

DC Block:
ATTACK                  RANGE                SAVE                          EFFECT
Unarmed                 Touch                DC17 Toughness (Staged)       Damage (Physical)

Mythfire (Blast)        100'                 DC25 Toughness                Damage (Energy)
Overload (Dazzle)       100'                 DC16 Reflex/Fortitude         Stun/Blind
Emotion Control         Perception           DC20 Will                     Emotion
Healing                 Touch                DC19 Fortitude                Harmless

Belly Buster (Nauseate) Touch                DC20 Fortitude (Staged)       Damage 
Soul Blast              100'                 DC20 Will                     Drain Will
Sudden Strike           Touch                DC25 Toughness                Damage


Totals: Abilities (30) + Combat (18) + Saving Throws (15) + Skills (9) + Feats (8) + Powers (68) - Drawbacks (0) = 148/150 Power Points

 


 

Edited by Hero Lad
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I hope you're going to fill out the Na!e and whatnot fields above. No one else may know who your character is, but the refs have to, at a minimum.

As to the character build, I see a few rules infractions but I'm going to ask a bigger question: if the concept is a character that people are not sure exists, what stopsthem from taking his picture?

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Hey Hero Lad, grats on getting started on working on a character.  Cleary there is still a lot to work on (all his background and other fluff), but while you did that, I thought I would point out some problems with the mechanics crunch. 

Combat:
There are some issues with his attack and defense, which I discuss down in the feats section.
 

For the moment, I will not comment on Grapple or Knockback, as there might be some changes which effect those. 

Saves:

You cannot buy Toughness this way.  If you want to increase your Toughness without improving your Con, you either need to buy the Defensive Roll feat (each rank adding +2 toughness, but can be lost if you are flatfooted) or buy the Protection or Forcefield powers.
 

Skills:
Please include the total skills after adjusting for your stat bonuses.  Ex: Computers 4 (+7) 

Feats:
Attack Specialization cannot be bought for "Ranged."  If you want to improve all ranged attacks, you would need Attack Focus: Ranged (which adds +1 per rank).  This is also problematic as at least one of your alt powers is a melee attack, and thus would have a very low attack bonus without this.  One option might to drop the feat and buy Accurate 3 on your array, which would give you +6 to hit with any power which has an attack roll (and not all of them do). 

Improved Defense: this feat does not increase your normal defense, it only helps if you use the Total Defense Action (which requires the use of your standard action in a round).  So your character's defense is only the +5 you purchased in combat.  If you want to increase defense beyond that, you need to buy Dodge Focus or the power Shield, each of which only add +1 defense per power point spent. 

Sneak Attack is also problematic, as with your current ranks of Blast and your attack bonus of +11 (if you make the changes discussed above), you will be violating PL caps when Sneak Attack is figured in. 

Powers: 
Invisibility and Silence are not powers, please note these as Concealment Sight and Hearing senses and note all the applicable ranks and other things involved. 

The Array, I assume the Blast/Damage is rank 8?  (need to note that).

As for the alt powers, you need to provide more information about each of them, such as how many points of the array each use and whether there are any feats, extras or flaws.  Also, what is Soul Blast?

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Thanks for the help, as I clearly need it. I do intend to fill out the sheet in full, but want to get the mechanics down before investing a background in a character that is unworkable or too highly flawed to continue.

As for the mythic aspect, Batman was described as an urban legend for years. No one managed to take his photo. He didn't have such an accomodating power set. So that began my HOPES of such a character. In action, it may fall apart quickly.

Invisibilty is from Ultimate Power page 164 and Silence from page 190. Unless I have a bad edition. It's from 2E and I didn't see any prohibitions on the House Rules section.

Soul Blast is listed as an AP for the Hellfire Control power in Ultimate Power. It is described as: Your hellfire can "burn" a target's mind or spirit rather than just the body; this is a Ranged Will Damage effect at two- thirds of your Hellfire Control rank.

Thanks. I'll add in the info to the APs and array and try to clear up any issues.

The combat aspect is what is giving me the most trouble. I'm not sure what counts as good minimums and how to set that up accordingly. I think I DID get Attack Specialization confused with Attack Focus. So I'll have to go back and crunch some numbers and change some stuff. The Accurate 3 (and Defensive Roll) suggestion might do the trick.

Yep, looks like I lumped Toughness in with the other saving throw purchases, but a quick re-read only showed the other three.

 

 

 

 

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Thanks for the help, as I clearly need it. I do intend to fill out the sheet in full, but want to get the mechanics down before investing a background in a character that is unworkable or too highly flawed to continue.

I think this may be  a point at which we fundamentally disagree. On the one hand I do build like you; I like to get mechanics down rather than building a character around a specific trick that isn't possible mechanically, at the end of the day mechanics should serve the character. Right now you don't have a character, or at least nothing that I'm seeing here. There isn't even a name or an outline of a backstory here, just a bare-bones concept. Certainly I don't see how "hero who is largely a mystery" ties to "I can control the powers of Hell and Perdition." I think you need to spend a little bit of time working on the fluff of the character before creating a whole, complete set of powers.

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I think this may be  a point at which we fundamentally disagree. On the one hand I do build like you; I like to get mechanics down rather than building a character around a specific trick that isn't possible mechanically, at the end of the day mechanics should serve the character. 

I think it all falls into place organically. For me, at least. Yet I do think concept is king. A man who dresses like a bat. A young teen with spider powers. A super man who fell from the sky. America's perfect soldier. Then we begin to ask. Who is this person? How does he have such power? What is his normal life like? What is the downside of having such powers or acting like a hero?

I haven't figured out a regular name for this guy, but I do know some of the fluff. He's a Golden Age nostalgist. And not just for heroes or that time period, but for all of yesteryear. As a concept. Because of elements he sees as important. Being a gentleman. Having a sense of honor and duty. Chivalry. Good worth ethic. Opposing tyrrany. All the "good" elements man has displayed through history. Even to the point of legends or myth. King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table? Perfect example for him.

And he is so into it that it's his job. He's Program Director for the Piedmont Cultural Society, a private club for nostalgia enthusiasts. And he's not the type to be connected to "Hell and Perdition." He's the type to be connected to another dimension. One where myths are real. Or at least manifest. And the (magical) interdimensional energy that gives him is powers, he calls "MythFire" (a hellfire variant.)

But, yeah. The fluff needs work as well as the mechanics. But for me, the fluff is easy. So I'm trying to fix the hard parts first. And thanks for taking an interest and trying to help me along.

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