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Old 01-15-2020, 02:37 PM   #21
Varyon
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Default Re: Supers in otherwise-realistic settings

One Supers setting I came up with, inspired largely by a combination of Worm and Dr Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (and probably the way I had a mechanic from a game system focusing on Supers, the name of which escapes me, described to me), had an interesting quirk in the way superpowers functioned. In general, supers and their henchmen are markedly more durable than expected (in GURPS terms, IT:DR, Regeneration, Hard to Kill, and a touch of Serendipity), but those they harm - even indirectly, with collapsing buildings and the like - benefit from the same improved durability, keeping death tolls rather low. Supers can bypass this effect, by a mechanism called Killing Intent. Doing so is rare, for a variety of reasons. First off, a murderous super is likely to have others (even fellow villains) come down on him hard, either killing him directly or, more likely, capturing him and delivering him to the authorities, where execution is likely. Next, Killing Intent reduces one's own durability - to that of a normal human if enhanced durability isn't part of the character's powerset - which is obviously dangerous. Finally, supers who actually use Killing Intent successfully risk losing their minds; there would likely be a few high-priority supervillains who were relatively normal supers before killing somebody made their minds crack. I'll note here that using Killing Intent against supers who aren't responding in kind isn't quite as dangerous - while it does shut down their defenses, the fact they are holding back means you get some degree of benefit from the less-lethal nature of their own attacks. Due to this, some supers will actually use Killing Intent against other supers without any actual intentions of killing the target, simply to effectively increase their own firepower; this is dangerous, as it means a mundane person with a gun can end you readily, or your opponent might opt to use Killing Intent of their own (or you might accidentally actually kill them, with the negative repercussions of doing so). Similarly, you don't have to use Killing Intent to actually cause someone to die - they are more durable, but hardly immortal. Also, an effect that is sufficiently divorced from human action can sometimes bypass the protection (*cough*convoluted deathtraps*cough).

The way I'm thinking it would work, this protection would have a few tiers to it. The strongest, Tier 4, would be in play for super vs super combat (basically, one's own enhanced durability stacking with the enhanced durability from being targeted by a super). Tier 3, a bit less effective, would be what supers enjoy against mundanes, and henchmen enjoy against enemy supers. Tier 2, less effective still, would be what mundanes enjoy against supers, and henchmen enjoy against mundanes. Tier 1, the least effective, would be what mundanes enjoy against henchmen. Using Killing Intent makes a super function as though he or she were mundane, but lowers the level of protection the target enjoys by 2 steps. Most indirect effects (like collapsing buildings) lower the level of protection by 1 step, but it is possible to lower it further with more complicated arrangements (as in the case of the deathtrap clause, above).

Essentially, this would be having a lot of supers tropes be in play as a direct result of the way the powers work, and with people being aware of it. The setting was going to have supers start showing up after superhero comics were fairly well-established, meaning there would be a strong inclination for those who gained powers to go out as costumes. Taking a cue from Worm, there would also be a massive threat (akin to Worm's Endbringers) justifying tolerance for costumed maniacs running around.
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Old 01-16-2020, 03:41 AM   #22
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Default Re: Supers in otherwise-realistic settings

My group is taking a break from the third instalment of our superhero campaign.

Part one saw the PCs go from mundane Australian commandos to low powered supers (thanks to alien technology discovered in the jungle) during the American Vietnamese war.

Part two saw the PCs catapulted into the future experiencing a variation on gurps Reign of Steel where aliens battle killer robots and humanity struggles to survive.

Part three saw the PCs travel back in time to 1968 where they turned up in California. The PCs are now mid-power supers and practically invincible compared to mundane people. They know that are dark future awaits but they don’t know what to do about it as the rules of time travel are unknown.
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Old 01-16-2020, 04:22 AM   #23
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Default Re: Supers in otherwise-realistic settings

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Being good at trading is different from insider trading, which has the specific meaning of trading based on information you have from the inside of a company that the public market doesn't. A person trading based only on public information and making rolls at skill 30 or whatever is doing something perfectly permissible.
I kind of wonder about intuition and say sports gambling and the stock market. Buy, short or ignore are a nicely limited number of options to make the roll reasonable. And they just have good gut feelings.

Yes it could be illegal for them to trade at all but with out something like that I see that build as hard to stop with existing laws.
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Old 01-16-2020, 04:25 AM   #24
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Default Re: Supers in otherwise-realistic settings

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  • Insurance for causing collateral damage
Legal enforcement powers covers that, see https://kutv.com/news/nation-world/f...roys-mans-home
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Old 01-16-2020, 08:52 AM   #25
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Default Re: Supers in otherwise-realistic settings

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Legal enforcement powers covers that, see https://kutv.com/news/nation-world/f...roys-mans-home
That depends a lot on what country (or region) you're in, and how judges choose to interpret the law in this context.
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Old 01-16-2020, 10:41 AM   #26
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Default Re: Supers in otherwise-realistic settings

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I kind of wonder about intuition and say sports gambling and the stock market. Buy, short or ignore are a nicely limited number of options to make the roll reasonable. And they just have good gut feelings.

Yes it could be illegal for them to trade at all but with out something like that I see that build as hard to stop with existing laws.
This all assumes a few things, that such ability combos exist, they're common enough to be an issue, and even more importantly for laws that they know they're using supernatural powers.
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Old 01-16-2020, 04:14 PM   #27
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Default Re: Supers in otherwise-realistic settings

'Realistic' superhero settings usually depend on abilities from the subtler powers. For example, the powers of Astral Projection, Body Control, ESP, Machine Telepathy, Probability Alteration, Telepathy, and Vampirism (as well as the relevant antipowers) would qualify as reasonably subtle. They are also suitable for 'realistic' psionic settings that depend on the subtler powers.

For example, imagine a superhero with IQ 12 [40], Will 20 [40], Telepathy 4 [20], and Illusion (Based on Will, +20%; Initiative, +100%; Mental, +100%; No Signature, +20%; Reliable, +10, +50%; Stigmata, +100%; Super, -10%) [120]. While the character is a one trick pony, it is a very effective trick, as they can quickly take over the perceptions of small groups of people. While they have an effective attribute of 34, the rule of 16 prevents them from causing too much harm to every turn to individuals, but they do not really suffer penalties unless they are afflicting more than 18 people simultaneously. The effects are relatively subtle, it would most likely be attributed to a poison rather than a psionic ability.

What could a psionic do with such an ability? How about manipulating the perceptions of a driver of an oil tanker so that they drive their vehicle into the headquarters of a corporation at 55 mph? Heck, with Initiative, their illusions are fire and forget, allowing them to program the perceptions of multiple drivers of multiple oil tankers so they function as living weapons.
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Old 01-16-2020, 06:37 PM   #28
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Default Re: Supers in otherwise-realistic settings

@ Alexanderhowl,

That is one way of handling things. In my campaign the PCs have flashy obvious and unrealistic powers like lightning blasts, force fields, super strength and flight. Whereas apart from the odd super powered NPC (which are extremely rare) the campaign is realistic and historically accurate.

What prevents the PCs from overreach and fundamentally changing the character of the campaign world is that they are time travellers from the future and they can never be sure of the consequences of overt action.
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