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Old 07-20-2020, 04:31 PM   #1
AlexanderHowl
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Default Stretching Stunts [Powers/Supers]

Imagine that you have a character with Body Alteration Talent 4 [20], Double-Jointed [15], Immunity (Acceleration) [10], Luck [15], and Stretching 15 (Reflexive, +40%; Reliable, +10, +50%) [171]. From the rules in Powers and Supers, the combination of Double-Jointed plus Stretching 15 allows them to move through a SM-15 opening without trouble and the combination of Body Alteration Talent, Reflexive, and Reliable would allow them to extend and retract instantly (and Immunity (Acceleration) would allow them to benefit from such extension and retraction without harm). What type of stunts do you think that such a character would be capable of?
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Old 07-20-2020, 10:53 PM   #2
transmetahuman
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA
Default Re: Stretching Stunts [Powers/Supers]

Elastigirl immediately jumps to mind as a competent, fast stretcher with, I'm sure, more tricks than I'm remembering right now. There's certainly:
  • Super Jump via slingshot effect.
  • Using her body to create bouncy cover for everyone inside her sphere.
  • Slowing her (and I think others') fall with the parachute trick.
  • ...also cushioning the falls of others/objects by getting under them.
  • Entanglements of several forms, of course.
  • Elastigirl never did this, but I imagine she could become a life saving thermal (body heat) blanket or even clothing for someone in danger of hypothermia.
I know I'm forgetting a bunch; she was very creative with her power. It's been a while.

Here's a YouTube compilation of the different ways she used her power in the movies: https://youtu.be/XrjEZRGUgnA

Last edited by transmetahuman; 07-20-2020 at 10:58 PM. Reason: Added YouTube link
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Old 07-20-2020, 11:04 PM   #3
AlexanderHowl
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Default Re: Stretching Stunts [Powers/Supers]

That is within the rubric of Using Abilities at a Default, but I was think if stunts that did not use other abilities. For example, a character extending their legs 700 yards, grabbing the roof, and then retracting their legs, allowing them to climb 700 yards in just a second (effectively moving 1400 mph up) or a character attacking someone 700 yards away by extending their arms and legs instantly (effectively having a Crushing Attack with a Reach 700 yards long).
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Old 07-21-2020, 12:09 AM   #4
naloth
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Default Re: Stretching Stunts [Powers/Supers]

Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
Imagine that you have a character with Body Alteration Talent 4 [20], Double-Jointed [15], Immunity (Acceleration) [10], Luck [15], and Stretching 15 (Reflexive, +40%; Reliable, +10, +50%) [171]. From the rules in Powers and Supers, the combination of Double-Jointed plus Stretching 15 allows them to move through a SM-15 opening without trouble and the combination of Body Alteration Talent, Reflexive, and Reliable would allow them to extend and retract instantly (and Immunity (Acceleration) would allow them to benefit from such extension and retraction without harm). What type of stunts do you think that such a character would be capable of?
Reflexive doesn't make it an "instantaneous" ability. It allows switchable abilities to be used as a defense or sensory abilities to switch on instead of having to actively scan.

Per Supers, you could use Talent to activate a total of 5 levels per turn, but if you want more, you should use "Reduced Time" to decrease activation time instead.

Immunity (Acceleration) doesn't do anything for this build. Characters are expressly immune to direct use of their abilities. Speedsters need it because basic Enhanced Move only gives the ability to accelerate. Maneuvering is handled normally, especially turning.

You could travel by extending yourself one turn, then retracting yourself another. At SM+10, that's 100 yards in 2 seconds or ~100mph for as long as you can keep it up. Since you don't have acceleration or deceleration, you can change directions at the beginning of each 2 second increment, but you do travel in big steps. You'd be taking Activate Maneuvers each time (Reflexive doesn't eliminate this, though Reduced Time could) and it would not work for a slam (not a move, not building up any momentum, etc).

A Move 5 character that bought Enhanced Movement (Running) would need ~3 levels to match it (half the cost) and have more versatile movement.

The higher level SM you use, the more pronounced the drawbacks get and the better EM looks. It's a reasonable power stunt in a pinch, but taking a move ability as an AA do you better.
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Old 07-21-2020, 12:14 AM   #5
awesomenessofme1
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Default Re: Stretching Stunts [Powers/Supers]

Quote:
Originally Posted by naloth View Post
You'd be taking Activate Maneuvers each time (Reflexive doesn't eliminate this, though Reduced Time could) and it would not work for a slam (not a move, not building up any momentum, etc).
Reflexive counts as a level of Reduced Time for active use.
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Old 07-21-2020, 12:21 AM   #6
naloth
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Default Re: Stretching Stunts [Powers/Supers]

Quote:
Originally Posted by awesomenessofme1 View Post
Reflexive counts as a level of Reduced Time for active use.
Yea, I should have been clearer. It's why I used SM+10 as an example since with Reflexive or one level of Reduced Time you could activate 10 levels as a single action stretching yourself to SM+10/100 yards, then retract yourself another SM-10/2 yards as a single action.
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Old 07-21-2020, 07:05 AM   #7
Plane
 
Join Date: Aug 2018
Default Re: Stretching Stunts [Powers/Supers]

Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
I was think if stunts that did not use other abilities.

For example, a character extending their legs 700 yards, grabbing the roof, and then retracting their legs, allowing them to climb 700 yards in just a second (effectively moving 1400 mph up)
I'm now wondering if that would function differently than "extending my arms 700 yards, grabbing the roof, then retracting my arms".

It occurs to me that "my limb is suddenly very long" may not necessarily mean "my straight limb remains straight now that it is long".

Perhaps a straight leg which is lengthened is initially actually bent, so that you need to "stand up" again (Change Posture) to take advantage of your new dimensions?

Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
or a character attacking someone 700 yards away by extending their arms and legs instantly (effectively having a Crushing Attack with a Reach 700 yards long).
I think for a punch that only your new arm length would matter in GURPS terms, even though realistically longer legs should help too since they'd let you lean further into a lunge like with a lunge.

I expect legs' help here would be reflected in buying a higher Basic Move to reflect your longer strides taking the same short amount of time as your usual short strides?

Otherwise you might be taking super-long steps that take several seconds each?
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Old 07-21-2020, 07:29 AM   #8
naloth
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Default Re: Stretching Stunts [Powers/Supers]

Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
That is within the rubric of Using Abilities at a Default, but I was think if stunts that did not use other abilities. For example, a character extending their legs 700 yards, grabbing the roof, and then retracting their legs, allowing them to climb 700 yards in just a second (effectively moving 1400 mph up) or a character attacking someone 700 yards away by extending their arms and legs instantly (effectively having a Crushing Attack with a Reach 700 yards long).
You couldn't extend and retract in the same action, and SM+15 wouldn't be 1 turn of extension as purchased anyway. It would take you 1 second to prepare a SM+10 limb to attack the next second as purchased, unless you tack on a level of Reduced Time. Even so that would only make up to SM+10 "no action" allowing you to attack in the same second and retract in the following second.
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Old 07-21-2020, 08:21 AM   #9
AlexanderHowl
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Default Re: Stretching Stunts [Powers/Supers]

As per Powers (p. 109), each level of Reliable counts as a level of Talent, meaning that the above build effectively has fourteen levels of Talent, reducing the time to stretch from SM+0 to SM+15 from fifteen ready actions to one action (as per Powers, p. 78). Reflexive includes Reduced Time 1, making Shrinking a Free Action (Powers, p. 154) and allowing for power defenses (such as compressing oneself to 1/5" (SM-15) to avoid an attack). The power as built should allow for instantaneous and defensive stretching out to SM+15, meaning that you could take a Free Action at the beginning of your turn to extend and then use a defense when attacked to retract (or retract as a Free Action at the beginning of your next turn).

Last edited by AlexanderHowl; 07-21-2020 at 08:24 AM.
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Old 07-21-2020, 08:33 AM   #10
awesomenessofme1
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Default Re: Stretching Stunts [Powers/Supers]

Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
As per Powers (p. 109), each level of Reliable counts as a level of Talent,
That's an extremely generous reading of that section. The description of Reliable describes exactly one thing - providing a bonus on rolls to use it. It saying "This works exactly like Talent" could be read the way you're interpreting it, but it seems clear to me that it doesn't do what you claim it does. The word "this" is referring back to the previous sentences describing the roll bonus it gives.
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