New Modifiers on Independent Body parts

Shuckster · 03-19-2021, 02:49 PM

So I'm wondering how much these modifiers I came up with would be priced at and if they're feasible or otherwise covered by other traits.

Breakaway+?%
Your character’s body parts detach themselves in response to being struck with enough force. This treats crushing attacks as if they were cutting attacks for the purpose of crippling injury where independent body parts are concerned. A blow to the head hard enough to crush the skull will instead decapitate the character and send the head flying away, detached but in-tact. Crushing blows that would cause crippling injury on the torso knock it free from all it’s limbs. This won’t actually prevent crippling injury if the character’s severed body parts have nowhere to fly off to, such as being crushed into the floor or against a wall.
Note: If the character has Fragile (Brittle) this eliminates the need to make the HT roll to avoid having the limb shatter or liquify from crushing blows as well as cutting but it does not stop independent body parts from being irrevocably lost if they are killed as per fragile.

Deliberate+?%
You can simply grab your body parts and pull them off yourself, or otherwise separate them from your body at will without causing it any injury. Dethatching body parts takes just as long as re-attaching them would take (one minute by default). Treat this like a limited form of Duplication with shared resources and no sympathetic injury, only limited by the body parts themselves which follow the normal rules for their statistics.

Fast Reattachment +25%
(Mutually exclusive with instant and slow reattachment)
Reattachment takes 30 seconds rather than one minute.

Modular reattachment +?%
(Mutually exclusive with no-reattachment)
You may reattach or even simply attach your independent body parts to different places on your anatomy than where they normally belong; treat this as a limited form of shape-shifting with a finite amount of material to work with. For example you could attach one arm to the wrist of another to create an arm of double length, with the other hand simply sticking out of the shoulder. Obviously you cannot do this with body parts that are not your own and must attach and re-attach each body part individually.

No Autonomy -50%
Your severed body parts are alive, unharmed and capable of movement but they do not move on their own, rather they still move as an extension of your consciousness as they did when they were attached. Your body parts will not continue to fight on if you die, and you still feel the pain of any injuries they sustain. This also includes a lack of spatial awareness as to where your body parts are: If you cannot see your body parts you must rely on your sense of touch to try and feel their surroundings. Your body must similarly rely on touch to find your head if that is detachable as it won't be able to hear or see!

Deliberate Only -?%
Your body can be damaged normally by crippling injury and your body parts can only be detached when you detach them yourself. This functions like a limited form of Duplication with shared resources and no sympathetic injury but damage from attacks will never sever the body parts without your conscious effort. If a body part is cut off by a cutting attack it is inert as if it had re-attachment only.

Slow Reattachment -50%
(Mutually exclusive with instant and fast reattachment)
Reattaching body parts takes an hour rather than a minute and must be held in place by hand or by splints, bandages or some other method until the body part finishes reattaching.

DangerousThing · 03-19-2021, 08:31 PM

I've never had a player choose Independent Body parts, but I love the image of hitting somebody's head with a bat and seeing the head fly across the room (to character, not a real person).

"He killed Kenny!"

Gef · 03-19-2021, 08:48 PM

Shuckster, I like the concept. For pricing these I suggest you start by referencing Cosmic, +50% to remove what is normally a built-in limitation. For instance, No Autonomy keeps parts under the character's control, which would be +50% on its own, but No Autonomy takes away some benefits too so it must be worth less than 50% total.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DangerousThing

I've never had a player choose Independent Body parts, but I love the image of hitting somebody's head with a bat and seeing the head fly across the room

Actually routinely had something similar come up in play on a regular basis, for a robot character whose brain was in his torso.

Shuckster · 03-20-2021, 12:11 PM

That makes sense to me but I feel deliberate wouldn't be worth the extra 50, and modular is similarly ify, though maybe breakaway would be at +50 cause it adds another damage type to the injury tolerance but doesn't change the other half of the advantage

Plane · 03-20-2021, 12:39 PM

for Breakaway I wonder if we could make that some kind of Cutting Attack limited so that it only works against yourself (-80%?) and you design it to inflict just the required damage needing to sever.

You could make it trigger:injury so it didn't work unless some other attack hit you, and if it only worked if that injury was to that body part I could see that being a further discount.

Shuckster · 03-20-2021, 02:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Plane

for Breakaway I wonder if we could make that some kind of Cutting Attack limited so that it only works against yourself (-80%?) and you design it to inflict just the required damage needing to sever.

You could make it trigger:injury so it didn't work unless some other attack hit you, and if it only worked if that injury was to that body part I could see that being a further discount.

So basically the character still takes sub crippling injury damage on each limb, its only when the crushing damage would cripple the limb that it detaches instead, just like how independent body parts treats cutting

Plane · 03-20-2021, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shuckster

So basically the character still takes sub crippling injury damage on each limb

That's one weird part about how IDP works...

It takes >50% HP to cripple a limb (6 hp for 10 HP human) so with the 1.5 multiplier that's 4 basic damage.

so if I inflict 4 cutting to limb of IDP person, the 6hp inflicted severs it and I'm fighting a 5/5 HP arm

but if I inflict 3 cutting to the limb (x1.5 = 4.5) his arm suffers 4 hp loss (down to 1/5 hp) and if I sever it with a 4 cutting attack I only need to fight an easy-to-defeat 1/5 hp arm.

Probably easier if we just separated "attacking to sever" (chopping through joint ligaments) and "attacking to destroy" (chopping through bones) and made those options for normal and IDP folk alike.

Racer · 03-21-2021, 06:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DangerousThing

I've never had a player choose Independent Body parts, but I love the image of hitting somebody's head with a bat and seeing the head fly across the room (to character, not a real person).

"He killed Kenny!"

I somehow got a flashback to Kryten's robotic 'member' escaping in Red Dwarf .

Not to mention his eye & hand combo being mistaken for a tarantula , when it came to rest on Lister's groin ... 8-I

Shuckster · 03-21-2021, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Plane

That's one weird part about how IDP works...

It takes >50% HP to cripple a limb (6 hp for 10 HP human) so with the 1.5 multiplier that's 4 basic damage.

so if I inflict 4 cutting to limb of IDP person, the 6hp inflicted severs it and I'm fighting a 5/5 HP arm

but if I inflict 3 cutting to the limb (x1.5 = 4.5) his arm suffers 4 hp loss (down to 1/5 hp) and if I sever it with a 4 cutting attack I only need to fight an easy-to-defeat 1/5 hp arm.

Probably easier if we just separated "attacking to sever" (chopping through joint ligaments) and "attacking to destroy" (chopping through bones) and made those options for normal and IDP folk alike.

So basically the idea behind break-away is the trope of a skeleton falling apart into a pile of bones when something heavy hits them, but being able to put themselves back together again, so instead of outright being destroyed by the bones shattering they would take like, four and a half minutes to put themselves back together rather than being dead

Pursuivant · 03-23-2021, 05:21 AM

Some of these traits might be special effects of Injury Tolerance (Damage Resistance).

For example, IT(DR) with a -10% Nuisance Effect - Body Part Falls off if it takes enough damage.

As dumb guesses:

Breakaway - This is a special effect of regular IBP. Instead of falling off when you take enough cutting damage to cripple the part, the part falls off when it takes enough crushing damage to cripple it. If both crushing and cutting damage can remove body parts allowing them to act independently rather than just being crippled, call it a +10% special enhancement. Add +10% per additional type of crippling injury which causes limbs to detach rather than just be crippled, treating "Piercing" as one class.

Deliberate - Given that you could conceivably hack off your own body parts with a successful attack and perhaps a Will roll, this shouldn't be too much of enhancement. Say +30% if you can drop one or more body parts as a free action, +20% if you must spend a turn to somehow drop each one (e.g., by physically pulling it off or concentrating for a second), or +10% if you must make a successful roll to drop them (e.g., a successful ST or Body Control skill roll. Halve these values if you can just drop a single body part of class of body parts (e.g., just your head or arms).

Fast Reattachment - There's a 3E RAW special enhancement to IBP that gives +50% for instant reattachment after just 1 second. Given that RAW for IBP requires 1 minute of contact time for reattachment, it makes more sense that: +10% = 30 seconds, +20% = 10 seconds, +30% 5 = 5 seconds, +40% = 2 seconds.

My logic here is that 30 seconds is longer than most fights will last, while 10 seconds takes you out of most fights. 5 seconds is about as long as it takes to cast a powerful spell or set up a really devastating melee or ranged attack, while 2 seconds is entirely manageable but risky in combat and about as long as it takes to cast most combat spells.

Modular reattachment - This is a fun one! Given its limited utility, time required to shift the modular parts around, and the nuisance effects of having legs for arms or your head where your leg should be, it's probably only worth +10% to be Mr. Potato Head.

Theoretically, this is actually a very limited form of Shapeshifting (Alternate Form) with the Nuisance Effect, Preparation Required, and Temporary Disadvantage limitations, but it simpler and more fun to keep it all as part of IBP. Just have players provide templates for powers provided by rearranged body parts.

No Autonomy - Basically, four problems in one: "Limbs Dependent on Owner's Non-Tactile Senses," "Owner Can Still Feel Severed Limbs' Pain," "Limbs Die with Owner" and "Owner Must Concentrate To Move Severed Limbs". Price them at -10% each.

Deliberate Only - You're adding the Deliberate enhancement but with the hefty special limitation "Limbs Crippled Normally By Damage Sufficient to Sever Them." Assuming that's a -60% limitation and using my pricing scheme for Deliberate: -30% if you can just remove limbs as a free action, -40% if you can only remove limbs by spending a turn, or -50% if you can only remove a limb after a successful roll.

Slow Reattachment - Given that No Reattachment is just a -60% limitation, this one's overpriced. Call it -10% for 10 minutes, -20% for an hour, -30% for a day, -40% for a week, or -50% for a month.

03-19-2021, 02:49 PM	#1
Shuckster Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: Near Chicago	New Modifiers on Independent Body parts So I'm wondering how much these modifiers I came up with would be priced at and if they're feasible or otherwise covered by other traits. Breakaway+?% Your character’s body parts detach themselves in response to being struck with enough force. This treats crushing attacks as if they were cutting attacks for the purpose of crippling injury where independent body parts are concerned. A blow to the head hard enough to crush the skull will instead decapitate the character and send the head flying away, detached but in-tact. Crushing blows that would cause crippling injury on the torso knock it free from all it’s limbs. This won’t actually prevent crippling injury if the character’s severed body parts have nowhere to fly off to, such as being crushed into the floor or against a wall. Note: If the character has Fragile (Brittle) this eliminates the need to make the HT roll to avoid having the limb shatter or liquify from crushing blows as well as cutting but it does not stop independent body parts from being irrevocably lost if they are killed as per fragile. Deliberate+?% You can simply grab your body parts and pull them off yourself, or otherwise separate them from your body at will without causing it any injury. Dethatching body parts takes just as long as re-attaching them would take (one minute by default). Treat this like a limited form of Duplication with shared resources and no sympathetic injury, only limited by the body parts themselves which follow the normal rules for their statistics. Fast Reattachment +25% (Mutually exclusive with instant and slow reattachment) Reattachment takes 30 seconds rather than one minute. Modular reattachment +?% (Mutually exclusive with no-reattachment) You may reattach or even simply attach your independent body parts to different places on your anatomy than where they normally belong; treat this as a limited form of shape-shifting with a finite amount of material to work with. For example you could attach one arm to the wrist of another to create an arm of double length, with the other hand simply sticking out of the shoulder. Obviously you cannot do this with body parts that are not your own and must attach and re-attach each body part individually. No Autonomy -50% Your severed body parts are alive, unharmed and capable of movement but they do not move on their own, rather they still move as an extension of your consciousness as they did when they were attached. Your body parts will not continue to fight on if you die, and you still feel the pain of any injuries they sustain. This also includes a lack of spatial awareness as to where your body parts are: If you cannot see your body parts you must rely on your sense of touch to try and feel their surroundings. Your body must similarly rely on touch to find your head if that is detachable as it won't be able to hear or see! Deliberate Only -?% Your body can be damaged normally by crippling injury and your body parts can only be detached when you detach them yourself. This functions like a limited form of Duplication with shared resources and no sympathetic injury but damage from attacks will never sever the body parts without your conscious effort. If a body part is cut off by a cutting attack it is inert as if it had re-attachment only. Slow Reattachment -50% (Mutually exclusive with instant and fast reattachment) Reattaching body parts takes an hour rather than a minute and must be held in place by hand or by splints, bandages or some other method until the body part finishes reattaching. Last edited by Shuckster; 03-20-2021 at 11:59 AM.

03-19-2021, 08:31 PM	#2
DangerousThing Join Date: Mar 2013	Re: New Modifiers on Independent Body parts I've never had a player choose Independent Body parts, but I love the image of hitting somebody's head with a bat and seeing the head fly across the room (to character, not a real person). "He killed Kenny!" __________________ A little learning is a dangerous thing. Warning: Invertebrate Punnster - Spinelessly Unable to Resist a Pun Dangerous Thoughts, my blog about GURPS and life.

03-20-2021, 12:11 PM	#4
Shuckster Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: Near Chicago	Re: New Modifiers on Independent Body parts That makes sense to me but I feel deliberate wouldn't be worth the extra 50, and modular is similarly ify, though maybe breakaway would be at +50 cause it adds another damage type to the injury tolerance but doesn't change the other half of the advantage

03-20-2021, 12:39 PM	#5
Plane Join Date: Aug 2018	Re: New Modifiers on Independent Body parts for Breakaway I wonder if we could make that some kind of Cutting Attack limited so that it only works against yourself (-80%?) and you design it to inflict just the required damage needing to sever. You could make it trigger:injury so it didn't work unless some other attack hit you, and if it only worked if that injury was to that body part I could see that being a further discount.

03-23-2021, 05:21 AM	#10
Pursuivant Join Date: Apr 2005	Re: New Modifiers on Independent Body parts Some of these traits might be special effects of Injury Tolerance (Damage Resistance). For example, IT(DR) with a -10% Nuisance Effect - Body Part Falls off if it takes enough damage. As dumb guesses: Breakaway - This is a special effect of regular IBP. Instead of falling off when you take enough cutting damage to cripple the part, the part falls off when it takes enough crushing damage to cripple it. If both crushing and cutting damage can remove body parts allowing them to act independently rather than just being crippled, call it a +10% special enhancement. Add +10% per additional type of crippling injury which causes limbs to detach rather than just be crippled, treating "Piercing" as one class. Deliberate - Given that you could conceivably hack off your own body parts with a successful attack and perhaps a Will roll, this shouldn't be too much of enhancement. Say +30% if you can drop one or more body parts as a free action, +20% if you must spend a turn to somehow drop each one (e.g., by physically pulling it off or concentrating for a second), or +10% if you must make a successful roll to drop them (e.g., a successful ST or Body Control skill roll. Halve these values if you can just drop a single body part of class of body parts (e.g., just your head or arms). Fast Reattachment - There's a 3E RAW special enhancement to IBP that gives +50% for instant reattachment after just 1 second. Given that RAW for IBP requires 1 minute of contact time for reattachment, it makes more sense that: +10% = 30 seconds, +20% = 10 seconds, +30% 5 = 5 seconds, +40% = 2 seconds. My logic here is that 30 seconds is longer than most fights will last, while 10 seconds takes you out of most fights. 5 seconds is about as long as it takes to cast a powerful spell or set up a really devastating melee or ranged attack, while 2 seconds is entirely manageable but risky in combat and about as long as it takes to cast most combat spells. Modular reattachment - This is a fun one! Given its limited utility, time required to shift the modular parts around, and the nuisance effects of having legs for arms or your head where your leg should be, it's probably only worth +10% to be Mr. Potato Head. Theoretically, this is actually a very limited form of Shapeshifting (Alternate Form) with the Nuisance Effect, Preparation Required, and Temporary Disadvantage limitations, but it simpler and more fun to keep it all as part of IBP. Just have players provide templates for powers provided by rearranged body parts. No Autonomy - Basically, four problems in one: "Limbs Dependent on Owner's Non-Tactile Senses," "Owner Can Still Feel Severed Limbs' Pain," "Limbs Die with Owner" and "Owner Must Concentrate To Move Severed Limbs". Price them at -10% each. Deliberate Only - You're adding the Deliberate enhancement but with the hefty special limitation "Limbs Crippled Normally By Damage Sufficient to Sever Them." Assuming that's a -60% limitation and using my pricing scheme for Deliberate: -30% if you can just remove limbs as a free action, -40% if you can only remove limbs by spending a turn, or -50% if you can only remove a limb after a successful roll. Slow Reattachment - Given that No Reattachment is just a -60% limitation, this one's overpriced. Call it -10% for 10 minutes, -20% for an hour, -30% for a day, -40% for a week, or -50% for a month.