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Old 10-22-2019, 04:12 PM   #1
Sorenant
 
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Default [Basic] Duration of Advantages with Preparation Required limitation

It's less of a question and more like seeking confirmation.
As I understand, if you have an advantage continual effect like Flight, Talent and Damage Resistance, it will last indefinitely after being activated, but if you have multiple abilities with this limitation you can only have one active at time, not unlike Alternate Abilities. Is this correct?
If so, what kind of condition would deactivate it? If there's none it would be free point break for characters with a single limited ability.
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Old 10-22-2019, 04:49 PM   #2
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Default Re: [Basic] Duration of Advantages with Preparation Required limitation

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Originally Posted by Sorenant View Post
If so, what kind of condition would deactivate it?
Usage. It becomes unprepared immediately after use, and usage needs to be determined at the time of ability creation.

For things that can theoretically last forever, I usually put a limit of 'consciousness'. IE if rendered unconscious your Requires Preparation DR will go away. Or I require some other annoyance that will mean the ability needs to get turned off every so often, otherwise, as you note, it becomes an immediate gimme for any Character that has only one such ability with this Limitation.
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Old 10-22-2019, 05:20 PM   #3
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Default Re: [Basic] Duration of Advantages with Preparation Required limitation

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Originally Posted by evileeyore View Post
Usage. It becomes unprepared immediately after use, and usage needs to be determined at the time of ability creation.

For things that can theoretically last forever, I usually put a limit of 'consciousness'. IE if rendered unconscious your Requires Preparation DR will go away. Or I require some other annoyance that will mean the ability needs to get turned off every so often, otherwise, as you note, it becomes an immediate gimme for any Character that has only one such ability with this Limitation.
That makes sense and is how I expected it to work, thanks!
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Old 10-22-2019, 06:35 PM   #4
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Default Re: [Basic] Duration of Advantages with Preparation Required limitation

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Originally Posted by evileeyore View Post
Usage. It becomes unprepared immediately after use, and usage needs to be determined at the time of ability creation.

For things that can theoretically last forever, I usually put a limit of 'consciousness'. IE if rendered unconscious your Requires Preparation DR will go away. Or I require some other annoyance that will mean the ability needs to get turned off every so often, otherwise, as you note, it becomes an immediate gimme for any Character that has only one such ability with this Limitation.
I'd almost certainly be harsher for something like standard DR, at best I'd let it work for a single combat encounter and I would communicate this to the player during character creation. For (Semi-)Ablative DR I'd let it last until it was destroyed via damage, but once damaged not let it heal without Preparing a new use.

Costs Fatigue would make me ignore the above, since it's a very noticable time limit on its own. And Powers has several Limitations that would also make me point to them as the actual duration: All-Out, Costs HP, Maximum Duration and Requires Concentrate/Ready. These Limitations all have a built in time limit, which means there won't be the same issue of "It stays up forever once Prepared".
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Old 10-22-2019, 06:55 PM   #5
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Default Re: [Basic] Duration of Advantages with Preparation Required limitation

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Originally Posted by WingedKagouti View Post
I'd almost certainly be harsher for something like standard DR...
While there is certainly an argument (a harsh one, but RAW) that DR lasts until it is used, IE it blocks damage once and would require repreparation...

However, I look at the Limitation and compare it to others of a similar cost break and decide from there. With something like DR, taking more than a minute (or 10) means it's almost never useful for combat, and certainly useless in an ambush which is where it's most useful!


Now if you mean, once prepped it lasts until the end of the first combat, that I can get with. Because then they can prep it again if they have time after that combat, but if it takes an hour to prep, I'd probably let it last until unconsciousness, or a set time limit (call it 8 hours or so probably).
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Old 10-22-2019, 07:26 PM   #6
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Default Re: [Basic] Duration of Advantages with Preparation Required limitation

Whether a use of DR lasts against 1 attack or 1 full minute seems to vary upon which limitation's applied doesn't it?
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Old 10-22-2019, 08:37 PM   #7
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Default Re: [Basic] Duration of Advantages with Preparation Required limitation

I think Sorenant was asking how long an ability can remain prepped, rather than how long it lasts once it's been activated.

By RAW, there's no expiration time on the prep work. Once prepped, the ability is available until you use it or you prep something else.
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Old 10-22-2019, 09:14 PM   #8
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Default Re: [Basic] Duration of Advantages with Preparation Required limitation

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Originally Posted by Anaraxes View Post
I think Sorenant was asking how long an ability can remain prepped, rather than how long it lasts once it's been activated.

By RAW, there's no expiration time on the prep work. Once prepped, the ability is available until you use it or you prep something else.
I was actually asking the latter, how long it lasts once it's been activated.
If it matters, I'm curious specifically on how Talent as Magic from Fantasy (Talent with Preparation Required) would work. The text is clear that one "casting" lasts a day, but that seems like free point break for most of the time. Immediate Preparation Required fits thematically, but that'd be even more (arguably) free points.
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Old 10-22-2019, 10:10 PM   #9
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Default Re: [Basic] Duration of Advantages with Preparation Required limitation

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Originally Posted by Sorenant View Post
The text is clear that one "casting" lasts a day, but that seems like free point break for most of the time. Immediate Preparation Required fits thematically, but that'd be even more (arguably) free points.
Considering that they are "praying over and consecrating an area", there's your "it's definitely not a 'free points' thing" right there.

It's being used to prepare an area in which they now get the Talent while performing work in the area for that day.

In this case it's clearly being aimed at craftsmen, but if you want to allow it to apply beyond craftsmen, then you could gin up a whole system around it, allowing a warrior to ritually prepare the combat area by say, hastily inscribing a line (establishing the are in which the talent will apply) or calling out the foes he plans to defeat (establishing the enemies the Talent will work on) or even declaring his intentions with clarity ("I dedicate all foes I kill to you oh Marduk!").

Like you could decide even that how long the Talent lasts will also depends on how well they can make a Reaction Roll to invoke the 'powers that be" (which could be modified by taking extra time with the ritual preparations, sacrificing resources, swearing oaths (taking temporary Disads), etc).
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Old 10-22-2019, 10:52 PM   #10
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Default Re: [Basic] Duration of Advantages with Preparation Required limitation

The specific durations are 1 minute (cost fatigue) and 1 hour (limited uses), so I'd probably assume one of those also applies to other things that don't make sense without limited duration.
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