[MA] Pricing a stunning technique

[Humabout]

Using the technique creation system in Martial Arts, how much would you price Side-Effect (Stunning) as a penalty to default? I know using Enhancing Powers, this would run -5 and cost 2 FP, but I'm looking for something FP-independent. I also see Nose Slap as something similar that, with everything bundled together, comes out to a default of -5.

Does anyone have any ideas or thoughts?

[Varyon]

Negating a -5 costs either [5] or [6], and Reduced Fatigue Cost is +20%/level, so that's +40%. That works out to a cost of either [7] or [9], so -7 or -8 seems appropriate. I'd probably go with -7, personally, but make it a Hard Technique. If you just want something where any injury results in the foe having to make an unpenalized HT roll to avoid stunning, -5 is probably fine.

[PK]

It's worth noting that a standard punch to the vitals (-3) already forces the target to make a knockdown roll, at -5 for a major wound -- see the last paragraph on p. 137 Martial Arts -- and effectively, a knockdown roll is "roll HT or be stunned."

[Humabout]

Hmm...so -3 would be fair for a major wound to inflict stunning at a -5 to roll.

For reasoning sake, it seems that's -5 for at least 6 pts of injury (based on a standard human), so about -1 per injury. That would allow any hit to potentially stun, which seems like a fairly major bonus (-1 to default) halving the penalty to HT seems like a reasonable drawback for +1 to default (brings this in line with how Side Effect works). So this would work out to -3 to default, still. This isn't a commonly taught technique and requires Secret Technique, so it's a hard technique, too.

What do people think? Am I missing anything?

[Varyon]

Originally Posted by PK

It's worth noting that a standard punch to the vitals (-3) already forces the target to make a knockdown roll, at -5 for a major wound -- see the last paragraph on p. 137 Martial Arts -- and effectively, a knockdown roll is "roll HT or be stunned."

The Vitals are typically the most heavily-armored part of the target, while a generic stunning technique would in theory be able to hit anywhere and should be able to stack with pre-existing knockdown checks (which I would handle as multiple rolls, rather than a single penalized one).

I'd be more tempted to go with Face (-5) as the basis, as that has similar Stunning effects but is typically less armored. That includes a Limited Target Selection drawback, worth either +1 or +2 (+1 corresponds to Upper Body, getting an additional +1 for further limiting it doesn't seem inappropriate), indicating a general stunning technique of this sort may be appropriately priced at -6 or -7.