Malediction and Emanation

[Saabre]

I built an Affliction with the following enhancements and limitations:
Malediction 1
Sense-Based: Hearing
Area Effect: 8 Yards
Emanation

Obviously the Area Effect combined with Emanation makes the area centered on the PC using the Affliction. The way I was understanding Malediction would interact with this is that the Will roll to activate the ability still suffers a -1 for every hex away from the PC. However my player feels that the distance becomes irrelevant and that everyone in the area is effected at the same skill level.

My version: PC has 3 creatures around him at 1 hex, 3 hexes and 6 hexes. Rolling against a Will of 14 he gets a 10. This would give him a margin of success against the closest creature of 3, a margin of success against the creature at 3 hexes of 1 and the ability would fail against the creature at 6 hexes since the effective Will roll needed would be an 8.

My player's version: The PC activates the ability to go off at a penalty equal to the distance to the center of the effect which since it is an emanation is 0 and everything is effected equally within the area. If there was a creature at 1 hex range and a creature at 8 hex range they are both affected at the same margin of success. My player says that the penalty is only determined by where the center is and with Emanation it makes Malediction really not doing anything and I instead need Dissipating for it to work the way I am believing it works.

Actually regardless of whether he is right or I am right, the reason I put Malediction on the power is so that it ignores DR.

So, of course, my question is am I right or is my player right? Or is it something else entirely that we are both misunderstanding? If my player is right, is there another more appropriate way to bypass DR?

[PK]

This could be clearer in the Basic Set, but I've gone over this with Kromm in the past. Your player is right -- a power with Area Effect affects everyone in the area equally.

Think of it as analogous to damage. If you had Burning Attack 2d with Area Effect and Emanation, your attack would do 2d damage to everyone in the area equally, right? So if you have Affliction with Area Effect and Emanation, your attack affects everyone in the area equally.

The various forms of Malediction affect range -- and for an area effect, the range is always range from wielder to the center of the area. In this case, range is 0, because the wielder is the center of the area.

For your version, add Dissipation.

[Layander]

The ability mmalediction says it gets the same penalty as spells. If you look in the spells section it said there is no penalty for aoe spell range as long as your in one of the aoe hexes.

[Saabre]

If I instead use Sense-Based to bypass Armor, is there a way to make it a contested roll instead of just a pure resistance roll? Also, I'm fairly certain that I've seen builds that added a successful skill roll to activate a power, but I can't seem to find that in the book. Anyone know where that is?

[Refplace]

Originally Posted by Saabre

If I instead use Sense-Based to bypass Armor, is there a way to make it a contested roll instead of just a pure resistance roll? Also, I'm fairly certain that I've seen builds that added a successful skill roll to activate a power, but I can't seem to find that in the book. Anyone know where that is?

Contested is much more powerful then regular resistance rolls which is why it is so much harder to get. Maledictions which are designed to act like regular spells is I think the only RAW way to get that.
I cant find the answer to your second question at the moment and I checked Powers, Basic, Supers and Psionic Powers in that order. I know I read it somewhere though. This is why I would love an index of all enhancements and limitations.

[CattyNebulart]

Player here. If you just want to bypass armor there is Cosmic(Ignores Armor) for +300.

Of course Sense-Based(Hearing) at +150 would also allow it to bypass armor, since Sense-Based is an advantage when used without malediction (with malediction it's a disadvantage).

Yes both those methods are more expensive and weaker but to just get the ignores armor bit that's what you would need. I'll give some thought to how to rebuild it to accomplish what I think you want to accomplish.

Edit: for those playing along at home the goal is to spend 29 points to replicate a DnD monsters ability (The Petal from MM3) to sing a lullaby that makes people sleepy in the 7 yard area around it.

[munin]

Originally Posted by Saabre

If I instead use Sense-Based to bypass Armor, is there a way to make it a contested roll instead of just a pure resistance roll? ...

Malediction is the way to do that for an Affliction, then Sense-Based becomes a limitation rather than an enhancement.

However, if this is a build to make people "sleepy", rather than to put them to sleep, then you could build this as a Fatigue Attack (Missed Sleep) and add Requires Attribute Roll vs. Attribute Roll (-15% or -20% depending on the attributes; GURPS Psionic Powers, p. 20). But Malediction is easier.

Originally Posted by Saabre

... Also, I'm fairly certain that I've seen builds that added a successful skill roll to activate a power, but I can't seem to find that in the book. Anyone know where that is?

Requires Attribute Roll (GURPS Powers, p. 112).

Originally Posted by CattyNebulart

...Edit: for those playing along at home the goal is to spend 29 points to replicate a DnD monsters ability (The Petal from MM3) to sing a lullaby that makes people sleepy in the 7 yard area around it.

Fatigue Attack 1d-2 (Area Attack, 7 yards, +150%; Emanation, -20%; Hearing-Based, -20%; Malediction 1, +100%; Missed Sleep, +50%; Requires Magic Words, -10%; Symptom, 2/3 FP, Sleep, +150%) [20]. Notes: Concentrate maneuver, requires you to win Will vs. Will contest. Lost FP can only be recovered by sleeping; anyone who loses more than 2/3 of their FP to this attack automatically falls asleep until the FP is recovered.

You could add Based on HT, +20% to change it to a Singing-2 vs. Will contest. Or remove Requires Magic Words if the sound can't be stopped by gagging you.

[vierasmarius]

Originally Posted by munin

Fatigue Attack 1d-2 (Area Attack, 7 yards, +150%; Emanation, -20%; Hearing-Based, -20%; Malediction 1, +100%; Missed Sleep, +50%; Requires Magic Words, -10%; Symptom, 2/3 FP, Sleep, +150%) [20]. Notes: Concentrate maneuver, requires you to win Will vs. Will contest. Lost FP can only be recovered by sleeping; anyone who loses more than 2/3 of their FP to this attack automatically falls asleep until the FP is recovered.

You could add Based on HT, +20% to change it to a Singing-2 vs. Will contest. Or remove Requires Magic Words if the sound can't be stopped by gagging you.

The only problem with your build is that Incapacitating Conditions (like Sleep) are not compatible with Symptom. You may not need that though; losing 1/2 total FP to "Missed Sleep" gives the subject the equivalent of Drowsy, meaning they roll every two hours of inactivity to avoid falling asleep, and even on a success get -2 DX and IQ. Depending on how you adjudicate it, the penalty may actually kick in immediately, even though they don't roll to stay awake until later. And of course, once they drop to 0 FP they must roll Will every second they attempt an action; failure causes them to pass out until they return to positive FP (which takes at least a full sleep cycle for Missed Sleep FP loss). You should probably also cap FP loss at dropping them to 0, or remove the HP damage component. There's a thread somewhere in which we argued about whether "Safe" FP Damage would be a net limitation or enhancement.

EDIT: Here's the thread in question, and here's what Kromm said when asked about it. In short, if a Fatigue attack inflicts no HP damage below 0 FP (but can still reduce the subject to -1xFP and automatic unconsciousness) then it's +10%. If the power inflicts HP damage between 0 FP and -1xFP, but no more HP damage below that, it's +5%. He didn't comment on the value of limiting the power to stop at 0 FP (thus inflicting no HP damage, but also never inflicting automatic KO); I like Bruno's suggested -20% for that.

[munin]

Originally Posted by vierasmarius

The only problem with your build is that Incapacitating Conditions (like Sleep) are not compatible with Symptom...

That's what Basic says, but GURPS Powers uses Paralysis with Symptoms (Nerve Gas, p. P145), so it should be fine.

I don't know if that was part of the OP's concept though (I'm not sure if the intent is "sleepy" or "asleep"). If you take it out you can raise the attack to 1d-1 [25].

I don't think losing FP to a Missed Sleep attack is going to cause you to fall asleep right away, so I just threw it in for something to think about.

[vierasmarius]

Originally Posted by munin

That's what Basic says, but GURPS Powers uses Paralysis with Symptoms (Nerve Gas, p. P145), so it should be fine.

Hmm, you're right about that. I wasn't aware of any RAW build that inflicted an Incapacitating Symptom. Good to know. I think it's still a good idea for a GM to carefully regulate such powers to prevent abuse, of course.

I don't know if that was part of the OP's concept though (I'm not sure if the intent is "sleepy" or "asleep"). If you take it out you can raise the attack to 1d-1 [25].

I kind of wish there was a condition between Drowsy and Asleep, to represent a greater degree of tiredness than falling asleep after two hours of inactivity, but less than the level at which you pass out in seconds (ie, 0 FP).

I don't think losing FP to a Missed Sleep attack is going to cause you to fall asleep right away, so I just threw it in for something to think about.

Well, it'll only do as much as any other FP-draining attack, with the caveats that 1/2 FP counts as Drowsy and recovering the lost FP is more time-consuming. In other words, on a combat timescale it won't knock out targets any faster than regular FP loss.