Useful Low-Powered Abilities [Powers/Supers]

[AlexanderHowl]

Could you please point out where Maximum Duration applied to Modular Abilities is discussed in the books then?

[Donny Brook]

Modular Abilities is discussed on pages B71 and Powers p.62.

Maximum Duration appears on Powers p. 111.

[Plane]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

Maximum Duration is also probably not a legal limitation because Modular Abilities are transient rather than always on, as you have to use Concentrate to activate it (otherwise nearly every Modular Ability build would use it

Maximum Duration causes your ability to turn off (meaning I think you would lose the skills and be forced to rearrange them) plus there's a 5 minute downtime before you can begin trying to activate them again.

It's not a huge limitation (actually -0% if every 24 hours) but it could be a big problem for shorter periods if someone lost their ability to drive or fight or cast spells at an inopportune moment where they'd want longer periods of constant access to the skill.

[AlexanderHowl]

Originally Posted by Donny Brook

Modular Abilities is discussed on pages B71 and Powers p.62.

Maximum Duration appears on Powers p. 111.

Yes, I know. What I was asking though is if there is a canon example of Modular Abilities with Maximum Duration. As far as I can tell, Modular Abilities is a transient rather than an always on ability, meaning that it gives you the capability to reallocate a pool of points rather than giving you access to a pool of points. If it is only granting reallocation of a pool, Maximum Duration is not valid, but anti-powers will only prevent future reallocations of the pool of abilities. If it is granting a pool of points, Maximum Duration is valid, but anti-powers can disrupt the pool of abilities.

[Donny Brook]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

Yes, I know. What I was asking though is if there is a canon example of Modular Abilities with Maximum Duration. As far as I can tell, Modular Abilities is a transient rather than an always on ability, meaning that it gives you the capability to reallocate a pool of points rather than giving you access to a pool of points. If it is only granting reallocation of a pool, Maximum Duration is not valid, but anti-powers will only prevent future reallocations of the pool of abilities. If it is granting a pool of points, Maximum Duration is valid, but anti-powers can disrupt the pool of abilities.

Unmodified, you can apply your Modular points as you wish and leave it that way indefinitely. (However, if your Mod Abilities has the Max Duration modifier on it, you could not then add Max Duration to abilities built with the pool because that would be double dipping.)

[AlexanderHowl]

There are three categories of abilities in Powers (p. 153-154). They are Always On, Switchable, or Transient. Modular Abilities are not Always On and they are not Switchable, so they must be Transient. Modular Abilities are 1) normally off, 2) the user must trigger it every time they want to use it, and 3) the effects occurs an instant and immediately shuts off (for example, changing point allocation with Cosmic Powers and Slotted Cosmic Powers takes 1 ready action per ability).

[Donny Brook]

I don't think your characterization of Modular Abilities in that framework is correct, but apart from that, the text of Maximum Duration doesn't reference any of that, as you will see when you read it.

[naloth]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

There are three categories of abilities in Powers (p. 153-154). They are Always On, Switchable, or Transient. Modular Abilities are not Always On and they are not Switchable, so they must be Transient. Modular Abilities are 1) normally off, 2) the user must trigger it every time they want to use it, and 3) the effects occurs an instant and immediately shuts off (for example, changing point allocation with Cosmic Powers and Slotted Cosmic Powers takes 1 ready action per ability).

I would have considered them "always on" like a body part. If for some reason the advantage is removed or disabled, any granted abilities would disappear. It wouldn't be just the ability to switch abilities that disappears.

[kirbwarrior]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

There are three categories of abilities in Powers (p. 153-154). They are Always On, Switchable, or Transient. Modular Abilities are not Always On and they are not Switchable, so they must be Transient. Modular Abilities are 1) normally off, 2) the user must trigger it every time they want to use it, and 3) the effects occurs an instant and immediately shuts off (for example, changing point allocation with Cosmic Powers and Slotted Cosmic Powers takes 1 ready action per ability).

I'm fairly certain it's a combo of Transient and Always On. For instance, it makes perfect sense that with a power modifier an anti-power can turn off the entire pool or turn off the ability to rearrange the pool and I'm still not certain which applies normally. The way I've seen it talked about on the forum is that if the whole pool is limited (say with Costs FP) then it's treated as Switchable (costing 1 FP per minute to have the trait as a whole) while if it limits only the base cost (With Computer Brain, the 6pt base and not the 4pt levels) then it affects how it gets changed. If that's not true, then limitations on MA are vastly too good compared to putting those limitations on most advantages; With Super-Memorization and Immediate Preparation Required, you could take any trait for less points with basically no downside by only having to change MA once and still have the option to change it again in the future.

[AlexanderHowl]

Always On and Transient are mutually exclusive categories by definition. You cannot have an ability that applies to both categories.