The "Size Discount for ST -- Why?" Discussion

Varyon · 05-24-2016, 09:58 AM

I actually did an analysis of it a while back, the results of which can be found here. The values from the Mass and Volume system are outdated (you can find the updated version of that system here if you're curious).

Basically, all of the effects of SM actually do work out to be features, with a few exceptions. The first is the weight (and cost) of armor and gear. To determine the weight and cost of said armor and gear, take your SM's linear measurement (2 for +0, 3 for +1, 15 for +5, 0.5 for -4, etc), divide by 2, and square it. The price of this doesn't scale cleanly in the form of [+n]/+SM, unfortunately. Instead, use the linear measurement/2 from above, multiply this by 10, subtract 10 from the total, and multiply the whole thing by -5. Have a table:

Code:

SM	Mult	Cost
-6	0.01	[45]
-5	0.0225	[42.5]
-4	0.04	[40]
-3	0.09	[35]
-2	0.25	[25]
-1	0.49	[15]
0	1	[0]
1	2.25	[-25]
2	4	[-50]
3	9	[-100]
4	25	[-200]
5	49	[-300]
6	100	[-450]

The way I came up with these values is complicated, but ultimately comes down to something like a modified Payload (or the reverse of that value, for high SM characters) and assuming the character is ST 10 and that a normal loadout would weigh 2xBL (just below Medium Encumbrance).
Note this becomes a huge value for very large creatures, as their gear gets incredibly heavy and expensive - summer clothing weighs 100 lb (200 lb at low TL) for an SM+6 giant, and costs $60,000 for Status 0 (CoL is going to change by the same amount as gear). He needs Lifting ST 100 [270] and be Filthy Rich [50] to get on the same level as other characters, and then will probably need to invest in some Striking ST if he wants to be able to use actual weapons. Note I made this before I noticed the oddity of high levels of Payload vs ST (that is, you can reach a point where it costs less to increase ST to boost your existing levels of Payload instead of buying more Payload), so the numbers need some adjustment to account for this.

The next is consumption. A larger character should need to eat more, a smaller character should need to eat less. You can approximate this using Increased/Reduced Consumption, but honestly it's safest to assume that it's included in the gear adjustment, above. Consumption scales the same as gear - an SM -6 character needs to eat 1/100th as much as a human.

The last one is Wounding Modifier (note this is not a RAW effect). Realistically, larger creatures should be less susceptible to injury, smaller creatures more susceptible. Divide your SM's linear value by 2 - this is the divisor attacks suffer. This doesn't apply to explosions and the like (a large creature and small creature suffer equally from such). Buy an appropriate level of Vulnerability or IT:DR - this works out to [-25]/-1 SM, [25]/+1 SM.

05-24-2016, 09:58 AM	#29
Varyon Join Date: Jun 2013	Re: The "Size Discount for ST -- Why?" Discussion I actually did an analysis of it a while back, the results of which can be found here. The values from the Mass and Volume system are outdated (you can find the updated version of that system here if you're curious). Basically, all of the effects of SM actually do work out to be features, with a few exceptions. The first is the weight (and cost) of armor and gear. To determine the weight and cost of said armor and gear, take your SM's linear measurement (2 for +0, 3 for +1, 15 for +5, 0.5 for -4, etc), divide by 2, and square it. The price of this doesn't scale cleanly in the form of [+n]/+SM, unfortunately. Instead, use the linear measurement/2 from above, multiply this by 10, subtract 10 from the total, and multiply the whole thing by -5. Have a table: Code: SM Mult Cost -6 0.01 [45] -5 0.0225 [42.5] -4 0.04 [40] -3 0.09 [35] -2 0.25 [25] -1 0.49 [15] 0 1 [0] 1 2.25 [-25] 2 4 [-50] 3 9 [-100] 4 25 [-200] 5 49 [-300] 6 100 [-450] The way I came up with these values is complicated, but ultimately comes down to something like a modified Payload (or the reverse of that value, for high SM characters) and assuming the character is ST 10 and that a normal loadout would weigh 2xBL (just below Medium Encumbrance). Note this becomes a huge value for very large creatures, as their gear gets incredibly heavy and expensive - summer clothing weighs 100 lb (200 lb at low TL) for an SM+6 giant, and costs $60,000 for Status 0 (CoL is going to change by the same amount as gear). He needs Lifting ST 100 [270] and be Filthy Rich [50] to get on the same level as other characters, and then will probably need to invest in some Striking ST if he wants to be able to use actual weapons. Note I made this before I noticed the oddity of high levels of Payload vs ST (that is, you can reach a point where it costs less to increase ST to boost your existing levels of Payload instead of buying more Payload), so the numbers need some adjustment to account for this. The next is consumption. A larger character should need to eat more, a smaller character should need to eat less. You can approximate this using Increased/Reduced Consumption, but honestly it's safest to assume that it's included in the gear adjustment, above. Consumption scales the same as gear - an SM -6 character needs to eat 1/100th as much as a human. The last one is Wounding Modifier (note this is not a RAW effect). Realistically, larger creatures should be less susceptible to injury, smaller creatures more susceptible. Divide your SM's linear value by 2 - this is the divisor attacks suffer. This doesn't apply to explosions and the like (a large creature and small creature suffer equally from such). Buy an appropriate level of Vulnerability or IT:DR - this works out to [-25]/-1 SM, [25]/+1 SM.