[Basic] Icarus Landing System

[Sorenant]

Originally Posted by Anthony

flight (GURPS could use a slow fall ability, but Flight (Gliding, -50%; Downward Only -???, Minimum Descent Rate 10 yards/sec -???) works and will probably max out the limitations).

How about "Vertical Only, -25%" from Walk on Air and Super Jump (Gliding prevents going up, this would prevent going sideways, so the character can only go down) and "Minimum Descent Rate 10 yards/sec" as -5% to make the total limitation be worth -80%?

I think modified Catfall advantage, Parachute modifier and potential Cosmic is a simpler solution, but I think modified Flight is not that bad too.

[Rupert]

Originally Posted by Sorenant

That said, I support the idea that RAW Catfall should cost [5]. It's a neat ability but I find [15] exorbitant.

The RAW cost for Catfall is 10 points. I think it's probably over-priced at 10 points, unless the campaign sees a lot of falls from considerable heights, in which case it's probably a bargain.

[vicky_molokh]

Originally Posted by Rupert

Gliding and Flight Move bought down to 0 costs a net 0 points for the average Speed/Move 5 person. However, Gliding doesn't use Flight Move, so it shouldn't be granting that in the first place.

Huh, didn't realise that. Either way, basic Flight is [40], reduced flight move to 1 is [-18], so [22] even before you factor in any limitations like 'must only fly down, never up', which should be a huge one on something as versatile as Flight.

[awesomenessofme1]

It has an 80-yd minimum, but Accessory (Parachute) [1] should be valid RAW.

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by Rupert

The text on B80 under resistant would seem to make that illegal:

By the letter of the rules, it does. I certainly would not support Resistant to falling damage, but the Immunity comes out at a plausible price, if appropriately justified.

[evileeyore]

Originally Posted by Sorenant

So it seems he did not activate his augmentation at the right time, like opening a parachute too late. Which by the way seems to me like a fair interpretation of the Icarus Landing System: An electromagnetic parachute.

By the reading of the quote you provided, even accounting for a late opening the Icarus System burned out and stopped working high enough up that he returned to a fast drop speed before hitting the water.

So there is also a time limit on it's usage.

[Brandy]

Here's an old thread about the same topic. Last post has a version based upon flight with gliding.

[Aldric]

So it's a limited duration flight with gliding and a recharge time so you can't immediately reactivate it?

It's probably overcapping limitations, on the other hand, if you're going to fall, and this is the only "slow falling" option available...

[AlexanderHowl]

Since Super Jump protects against falling damage, I would just buy such protections as Super Jump (Only for calculating falling damage, -80%) [2/level]. Level five would cost 10 CP and would allow an average Basic Move character to ignore damage from falls up to 1,600" (around 42 yards or 14 stories), and you could increase it by five yards with an Acrobatics roll. Level 15 would cost 30 CP and would allow an average Basic Move character to ignore damage from falls up to 25 miles. Level 20 would cost 40 CP and would allow characters to safely fall from LEO and would probably adequately represent most reentry systems.

[Donny Brook]

Originally Posted by Anthony

Icarus Landing, as described, is Flight with a pretty severe limitation that all it does is cap your downwards velocity at the equivalent of a ten meter fall (about Move 15). Apparently normal people in that game take zero damage from ten meter falls.

I don't think that's quite right. It only works on falls over 10m. But you don't take 10m worth of falling damage when it works.