[Basic] Advantage of the Week: Resistant

[johndallman]

Resistant [variable] is an advantage which can be mundane or exotic, physical or mental. It provides resistance to attacks and conditions that are resisted with attribute rolls, by giving bonuses to those rolls, or possibly immunity, if the GM will allow you to buy that. This meta-advantage appeared at GURPS 4e, as a generalisation of several 3e advantages.

Resistant is no use against things that Damage Resistance or Protected Sense will stop, or help you resist. For the full details, which are a bit complicated, see p. B81. The basic cost of Resistance depends on how common the effects it helps you resist are; most common effects are broad categories, and the range is Very Common [30], Common [15], Occasional [10] and Rare [5]. Those prices are for complete immunity; you can buy +3 to your rolls at ⅓ cost, and +8 at ½ cost, and all fractions are dropped. Those numbers look odd, but turn out sensibly in conjunction with the Rule of 16 on p. B349. They also make it possible to build many historic GURPS advantages from Resistant. Note that Damage Resistance and Magic Resistance are separate advantages, with different mechanics. Resistances to physical things are almost always resisted with HT, while mental things are resisted with either Will or IQ, depending on what they are.

• Metabolic Hazards and Psionics are Very Common. Normal humans can’t buy specific resistances to these: buy up your HT, Will or IQ instead. Things without living metabolisms are required to buy Immunity to Metabolic Hazards, which is part of the Machine meta-trait.
• Poisons (all toxins, but not corrosives or absences of air), or Sickness (diseases, and reactions to environmental conditions) are both subsets of Metabolic Hazards and are Common. Normal humans could have Resistant (+3) to Poisons, but no more.
• Infectious diseases and ingested poisons are both Occasional. Normal humans can be Resistant to Disease at +3 or +8, but not immune.
• Rare conditions are very varied, and examples include acceleration, altitude sickness, decompression sickness, seasickness and space sickness. Nanomachines also come here, according to the Basic Set. Normal humans can be Resistant to any of these at +3 or +8, but not immune.

Resistant to Disease and Resistant to Poison are very common options on published character templates. GURPS supplements have many extra resistances and details. Adaptations has Resistant to Influence Skills; AtE allows Immunity to Disease, which is mildly cinematic, but in-genre. Bio-Tech describes the relationship between Resistant and Longevity, and also nanotech-based diseases, which Resistance to Disease don’t help with at all; you need Resistance to Nanomachines. Bio-Tech also has vaccines, which give Resistant or Immunity to a specific strain of a disease – vaccines against specific nanomachines might be feasible in some campaigns – and lots of modifications and drugs to give assorted resistances. Disasters: Meltdown and Fallout tells us that humans can’t buy Resistant to Radiation, and DF5 Clerics introduces Resistant to Good (or Evil) Supernatural Powers. DF9 Summoners has Resistant to Supernatural Abilities of the Undead, Resistant to Spirit Powers and Resistant to All Mind Control. DF11 Power-Ups has Resistant to Death Effects, while DF 14 Psi has Psionic Resistance priced like Magic Resistance, to match DF’s psionics rules and DF20 Slayers adds Resistant to Demonic Powers. Fantasy Folk: Elves has Eldritch Elves with Resistant to Metabolic Hazards, and Portal Realms has Resistant to Propaganda for modern-day people in portal realms. Furies adds Resistant to Bleeding, which could be quite popular in a gritty bio-tech campaign, and Resistant to Anunnaki Programming is very important in Horror: Madness Dossier. Resistant to Salt makes sense in Infinite Worlds: Nightreign, honestly, and Magic: Death Spells provides Resistant to Death Curses, and Death Spells.

Martial Arts has Resistant to Arm Injuries and Neck Injuries, and makes Resistance to a single Chi skill a perk, along with being Resistant to a single martial-arts Technique, while more general Chi resistance is priced like Psionic Resistance. Technical Grappling’s Control Resistance is priced as Damage Resistance, because it “armours” you against Control Points that are inflicted like damage. Monster Hunters’ “Epidermal Resistance” is concealed DR; the setting also has Resistant to Metabolic Hazards working against being knocked out or made into a vampire, and supernatural plagues with Magic Resistance and/or Resistant to Psionics. Powers explains the relationship between Resistant and anti-powers, Chinese Elemental Powers has Resistant to Knockback, and Divine Favor builds High Pain Threshold as Resistant to Pain. Enhanced Senses has Resistant to Mental Illusions, The Weird explains resistance to mental influence, mutations and pain and Totems and Nature Spirits has Resistance to Spirit Powers for the Snake totem. The Psi series gives us a drug for Resistant to Telepathy and Reign of Steel: Will to Live allows Resistant (+3) to Sickness – not just Disease – for humans who’ve lived through the plagues of the Final War. Space has Resistant versions for aliens and space travellers, and Steampunk adds the very practical Resistant to Motion Sickness. Thaumatology: Magical Styles has Elixir Resistance (+3) for a single Elixir, and Spell Resistance (+3) for a single spell as perks. Transhuman Space: Changing Times adds Resistant to Electrical Pulses and Surges, and Underground Adventures has Respiratory Poison. Zombies discusses resistance or even immunity to zombie plagues (there’s often a downside).

The usefulness of mundane resistances depends on campaign style to some extent. If the GM doesn’t feel tropical diseases will add to the story, even when the characters have arrived on Guadalcanal never having been in a jungle before, then buying Resistant to Disease is unproductive.

The only custom Resistant I’ve ever seen in play was against Magical Mind Control (+8), in the occult WWII campaign. I bought it for resisting another PC’s power, just in case he ever got taken over, but I’m quite glad this never happened.
What has Resistant allowed, or prevented, in your games?

[David Johnston2]

Resistant to Aging is of course the final fix for Unaging

[whswhs]

I think I had Resistant to Influece in Social Engineering before I put it into Adaptation.

[Prince Charon]

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

Resistant to Aging is of course the final fix for Unaging

That probably depends on what logic you base how common it is on. Making Unaging twice as expensive because everybody (who doesn't have a power like this and doesn't die of something else) starts aging eventually isn't a good solution to the issue, IMHO.

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by whswhs

I think I had Resistant to Influece in Social Engineering before I put it into Adaptation.

You did - i do supplements in alphabetical order because that's just easier.

[Prince Charon]

One of my not-yet-posted concepts for Mythic Elves has them with Resistant to Awe/Terror, due to them having an Awe ability naturally (kind of representing Galadriel's super-intimidation thing in the 'All Shall Love Me, and Despair' scene, that did not translate well to the movie) - since they can put people in Awe of them, it seemed reasonable that they cold also resist it when other Elves do it, as long as they're of similar or greater power.

Also thought that Resistant +1, which I don't think I've seen, should be 1/5th of normal cost, consistent with the most limited forms being perks.

[whswhs]

Originally Posted by johndallman

You did - i do supplements in alphabetical order because that's just easier.

Right, but it looks as if you skipped over SE this time. So I just wanted to note it.

[Phil Masters]

My Dungeon Fantasy necromanc... psychopomp has Resistant to Undead Supernatural Abilities (+8). It's not yet come up, for one reason or another, but I should remember to keep it in mind from time to time.

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

Resistant to Aging is of course the final fix for Unaging

Immunity to Aging is equal to Unaging but Resistant +3 or +8 is inferior to Longevity.

[JulianLW]

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

Immunity to Aging is equal to Unaging but Resistant +3 or +8 is inferior to Longevity.

But Resistant would give a bonus to resist aging effects, such as Steal Youth, whereas Longevity would not.