Gizmo (Reference Books only)

[lexington]

Originally Posted by Figleaf23

So he doesn't need to specify the number of books. If he's going to carry six books anyway, your probably best specifying them and their contents so they might be useful without using up a use of Gizmo, and leave the Gizmo itself an undefined among the rest of the books.

I think he means six Gizmo's which are all books, pulled from whatever collection the character has. That way they don't weigh him down before he needs them and he has exactly the ones he needs each time.

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by Bruno

I think the OP actually has 6 undefined text books that could be any of an undefined library of textbooks. That said, I largely think "textbooks only" is probably -60% to -80% anyways, so you just then need six levels of Gizmo if I've interpreted the situation correctly.

GURPS Raw advises the GM to limit Gizmo to 3 levels, but I suspect it'd bemore cleve to limit Gizmo by the number of CPs put into it. That way, payers can have more than 3 levels if they apply a Limitation, possibly many more than 3 levels.

I think -80% may be too much. Maybe -60% for Textbooks Only. With my proposal, if the max for Gizmos is 15 CPs, then the character can have 7 levels if Gizmo Textbooks only, or 6 levels for 12 CP.

12 CPs sounds perfectly reasonable to me, although given how heavy books are, I think they should count as encumbrance even though being Gizmos (I've long liked the idea of various "Realistic" Limitatations on Gizmo, especially "Goes Temporarily away if Strip-Searched". "Gives X lbs of Encumbrance per level" s another "Realistic" Limitation, though).

[Gorkamorka]

I know I'm coming to the party a bit late, but it sounds to me like a very specific Modular Ability.

[Bruno]

Originally Posted by Peter Knutsen

GURPS Raw advises the GM to limit Gizmo to 3 levels, but I suspect it'd bemore cleve to limit Gizmo by the number of CPs put into it. That way, payers can have more than 3 levels if they apply a Limitation, possibly many more than 3 levels.

I think that's a suggested option somewhere. It sounds awfully familiar - DF Ninjas?

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by Bruno

I think that's a suggested option somewhere. It sounds awfully familiar - DF Ninjas?

I don't think I got it from there. I was inspired by the suggestion I once read to limit Magery not to a number of levels but to a certain amount of CPs, thus Magery 3 unLimited, but with Limitatons Magery 4 and 5 and even 6 becomes available to players. That idea I am mostly sure I did not invent myself, but I can't remember where I got it from.

It seems obvious in hindsight anyway, which is another way of saying that whoever wrote GURPS Characters wit the suggested level-based threshold on Magery, did not think very broadly and creatively.

Gizmo is a trickier case, because in addition to Limtations based on subject matter (Aspected, and Aspected on Steroids), there are the two "Realistic" ones I suggested, and one can come up with others of that type.