Limitation of "One Use Per Person"

[JCurwen3]

How would you build into a power that it could only be used once on a person for the rest of time?

For instance, let's say you have Mind Control, and you can use it on anyone, but once you successfully use it on John Doe, your power will never work on him again.

How would you go about doing that?

[starslayer]

Accessibility limitation: no one I have used this power on before.

Probably only -10%; perhaps 15% in a game where your going to deal with the same people over and over. Ultimately this sort of limitation boils down to 'once per foe per combat'.

[Not another shrubbery]

Yeah, the Accessibility limit sounds about right. IAFMB... Is there a special mod in Psionic Powers that resembles this?
As usual for such things, it will depend on what you are modifying. It would be a bigger deal on an IA, frinst.

[JCurwen3]

Originally Posted by starslayer

Accessibility limitation: no one I have used this power on before.

Probably only -10%; perhaps 15% in a game where your going to deal with the same people over and over. Ultimately this sort of limitation boils down to 'once per foe per combat'.

Thanks, that makes sense, and those values sound about right. In the game I'm running there is a very large number of interconnected named and important NPCs developed over 2 decades of campaign-time and about a decade of real game time, several dozen overall, with maybe two dozen being encountered and dealt with continually, often each session. The PCs have children and ex-spouses that they've acquired due to roleplaying over the course of the campaign, and have to deal with in-laws and extended family, not to mention hostile NPCs and outright Enemies, many of which have high point values due to powers or resources. So I'd go for the -15% value easily, although any bigger than that would sound abusive.

In this case, I was curious how to build Lelouch's power in the anime Code Geass, which is an incredibly potent Mind Control ability (if they can see his eyes while he activates his power and then gives them a command, they do it) that is virtually irresistible (only one person I know ever resisted it, and she was the being who gave him his power), but he can't use it more than once on any given person. Thanks for the help.

[LemmingLord]

i agree that it is accessibility. you and the gamemaster need to decide how frequently it would be useful to (in this case) mind control someone more than once...

on the other hand, it should be noted that since you can only "use it" on a person once... that constitutes 1 total minute... I might give you -40% if the maximum duration on the power is 1 minute... that might be worth -20% for mind control... essentially good in fights, but not good to - say - guide you into a secure building through several access barriers and help you drive out your very own top secret awesome whatever it is.

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by Not another shrubbery

Yeah, the Accessibility limit sounds about right. IAFMB... Is there a special mod in Psionic Powers that resembles this?
As usual for such things, it will depend on what you are modifying. It would be a bigger deal on an IA, frinst.

But if it is only -10%, would players actually take it?

[Mgellis]

I tried to build this one, too, and I think the "Only on people I have not used the power on before" is an incredibly easy way to handle the problem. It makes sense.

I might make it a -20% accessibility, based on how that's what is used for even divisions of groups or situations like day vs. night, male vs. female, etc. Leluch's universe is neatly divided into two kinds of people: those he can use the geass on and those he can't (because he has already used it on them earlier).

Great series, by the way...nice artwork, some really clever ideas, good characters, a few really great comic moments despite all the dark stuff, and some genuinely disturbing and tragic plot twists. Do something happy after you watch it. :)

Mark

[LemmingLord]

Originally Posted by Peter Knutsen

But if it is only -10%, would players actually take it?

simulationist player: "yes, if it makes sense."
miniatures warfare player: "yes, all combats are over in 60 seconds"
storyteller: "yes, lots more opportunities for reoccuring enemies to continue to be thrats and add tension."
actor: "yes, a character who can only mind control once is going to pick and choose who he controls; which will reveal his motivation."
munchkin: "hmmm, if that's the only way I can have mind control, maybe; but if you let me make some modifications, I'll just take fast regeneration and then take the -10% takes 1hp of damage per use instead...and then i'll get back my hp every minute. muhahahah"

[munin]

Originally Posted by Not another shrubbery

... Is there a special mod in Psionic Powers that resembles this? ...

Yes. Increased Immunity (GURPS Psionic Powers, p. 21).

For Mind Control which starts at Immune for one day, changing this to Permanently immune would be -10%.

However, this is immunity if you fail, not if you succeed. I think successes are more likely than failures in general, so it's probably worth more as a limitation for successes (×1.5?).

[JCurwen3]

Originally Posted by munin

Yes. Increased Immunity (GURPS Psionic Powers, p. 21).

For Mind Control which starts at Immune for one day, changing this to Permanently immune would be -10%.

However, this is immunity if you fail, not if you succeed. I think successes are more likely than failures in general, so it's probably worth more as a limitation for successes (×1.5?).

That's a handy way to do it. Interestingly that's equivalent to what starslayer suggested doing via Accessibility. I'm not sure about the x1.5 bit (although I think you may have a point, it does feel like it should be scaled up in value). Maybe to play it safe I'd keep it at the same value. And perhaps some powers could get Increased Immunity both ways - for instance Mind Control that would only work once on a person if they fail to resist, and it will also be untryable on them again if they do resist too. Assuming the same value, the combined total would be -20% limitation for basically only being able to try the ability on someone once (and whether you fail or succeed, no second chances).