Saturday, November 28, 2009

M&M + FF7: Jenova Powers

Grisly Scene in action.

As mentioned before, I'm really proud of how these turned out. They're essentially a concrete mechanical way of adding in the elements discussed in my post on drawing on the slasher genre, while also creating some engaging gameplay. Both the powers and the associated drawbacks are designed to give a character something of a sinister bent, whether they're a well-intentioned hero or BBEG.

Jenova Powers are only available to characters tainted with Jenova cells. They can provide a notable edge, but generally come with drawbacks and require special GM permission to customize beyond the options listed in their descriptions. If a character's current corruption score is less than a power's prerequisite, that power is nullified (any drawbacks remain in effect). Characters may opt to nullify extras that increase a Jenova Power's corruption prerequisite so that they can retain the use of the power in a weakened form.

ABSORB MATERIA
(1 pt per rank, Corruption 3)
You gain a materia slot as though you were a Device with the same power rank. An absorbed materia can be knocked out of your body by a strong impact, so others can still attempt to disarm them if you're helpless.
Extras
-Additional Slot (+1, +1 Corruption): Each time you take this extra, you gain another materia slot or form a link between two unlinked slots.

BACKSTAB (1 pt per rank, Corruption 2)
You add your power rank to your damage bonus for lethal attacks against surprised opponents, as well as bluff, disguise, and stealth checks made to prevent someone from recognizing you as a threat. (The limited application of this bonus might lead the GM to declare that you partially succeed at a check. For example, he might say that a target's bodyguard rolled well enough to notice you lurking in the shadows, but not well enough to defeat your stealth check for the purpose of recognizing that you pose a threat; the guard orders you to come out in the open, but he doesn't draw his weapon or sound an alarm.)
Drawback: Temper
Choose a trigger that aggravates your character towards a person, such as being treated in a disrespectful manner. This trigger should have a frequency of Very Common (meaning there's a 25% chance that you'll get through an adventure without it coming up at least once). When someone sets off the trigger, your character must make a will save (DC 10+power rank) to avoid lashing out at the person in question. If your character is in position to "lash out" by making a lethal surprise attack, the save DC increases by 5, and if they fail the save by a margin of 5 or more they must make the attack rather than lashing out in another fashion (i.e. verbally).

BOOST (1 pt per rank, Corruption 0)
Each use of this power boosts one of your physical ability scores, as normal. The modifiers from these boosts are applied after the normal limits on ability scores, skill check bonuses, damage bonuses, and so on.
Extras
-Mental (+1, Corruption +3): You can also boost your mental ability scores.

DUPLICATION
(2 pts, Corruption 6)
The power's duration is continuous, but a duplicate's Power Level decreases at the rank of 1 rate per hour until it reaches 0 and dissipates. Your clones have no will of their own; you must issue them commands, which can be done as a move action.
Power Feats
-Mind-Link: As normal.
-Progression: As normal.
-Long-Lasting: Each time you take this feat, the interval of the rate at which your duplicates fade increases by 1 step along the Time and Value table.
Drawback: Degradation
You suffer a penalty on to skill checks, attack rolls and Defense equal to half your power rank, rounded up. This penalty fades at the rate of 1 point per 20 minutes. This drawback occurs with a frequency of Common; with GM approval, a player may also voluntarily choose to have the degradation's effects occur as a Complication.

FRENZIED ASSAULT (1 pt per rank, Corruption 4)
As a full action, you can make a melee attack against all opponents you can physically reach within a radius of (power rank × 5 feet). This attack can be a normal strike or a special action like Disarm or Trip. Make one attack roll and compare it against all targets in the area.
Power Feats
-Agile: After making your attack, you may move adjacent to one of the opponents you targeted.
Drawback: Bloodlust
Whenever you attempt to inflict nonlethal damage, you must make a will save (DC 10+your power rank) or attempt inflicting lethal damage instead.

GRISLY SCENE
(4 pts per rank, Corruption 7)
You gain linked Mental Blast and Emotion Control [Fear] equal to your power rank. You may not use these abilities directly; instead, you use the "materials" on hand (usually fresh victims) to create grisly scenes which function like traps. Each time someone comes across one of your scenes for the first time, they must make a will save (DC 15+power rank) to resist your power's effects; if they succeed, they become immune to any other scenes you've created for the rest of the day. It takes five minutes to create a scene; you can invest additional time to increase the save DC by 1 for each rank the construction time moves up on the Time and Value Progression Table (So for example, a scene that took an hour to create will have a save DC of 18+your power rank).

MASTER OF THE ELEMENTS (1+ pts per rank, Corruption 5)
While outdoors, you can influence the atmosphere around you. This power functions identically to Environmental Control, except that instead of the ability to create light you can instead gain the Obscure [Auditory, Visual] effects.
Extras
-Improved Control (+1, Corruption 9) Your abilities also function indoors.
Flaws
-Gradual Influence
(-1, Corruption -3): Any changes to the environment take an hour rather than a standard action.
Drawback: Negative Lifestream Link
You add your power rank to the DC of any attempts made to stabilize you, as well as subtracting it from your bonus on any recovery checks granted by healing effects.

MONSTROUS FORM
(5 pts per rank, Corruption 7)
You have an alternate form, which you can change into or out of as a full action. While in this form, you may not use Device powers, but the limits on your Save DCs and Toughness save bonus both increase by half your power rank (rounded down). Your alternate form grants traits whose total value is equal to 5 power points per rank; these traits may include the Additional Limb, Growth, and Speed powers.
Drawback: Brute
Whenever you wish to communicate something to another person in a way that goes beyond simple gestures and body language, you must first make an intelligence check (DC 10+power rank). This DC increases by 5 if you want to use complete sentences and another 5 if the communication involves a measure of subtlety and/or detail. You may retry this check once per minute.

ONE-WINGED ANGEL
(1 pt per rank, Corruption 8)
As a full action, you can grow (or retract) a single angelic wing that grants Flying at your power rank.
Power Feats
-Wingless: You can fly without growing your wing first, though this decreases your effective ranks in Flying by two.

PROFILER (2 pts per rank, Corruption 4)
You gain Emotion Control and Mind Reading equal to your power rank. You must may only use these abilities on targets you have observed for at least 5 minutes, and must speak with them in order to go beyond merely reading their surface thoughts.
Your mind-reading abilities are based more on your ability to extrapolate from behavioral cues than true psychic ability; at the GM's discretion targets may get an additional bonus of up to +10 on saves to avoid revealing information that should not be obtainable this way. For example, you could use your mind-reading power to accurately guess a security password consisting of a phrase the target selected themselves, but would have a much harder time if the password consisted of a string of random numbers the target had memorized.
Drawback: Obsessive
When given a choice between pursuing your current target and taking some other course of action, you must make a will save (DC 15+power rank) or be unable to put aside the current pursuit. You may reroll this save once per hour.

PUPPETEER (2 pts per rank, Corruption 5)
You can sense the minds of those with Jenova cells and/or Geostigma Syndrome, so long as they're within a radius equal to half your power rank on the Extended Range table, rounding down. You make a power check as a free action (DC 20-target's corruption score) and apply the result to each mind in range. You may then select one mind and continue to track it so long as you maintain concentration.
You also gain Mind Control at your power rank, usable only on targets you're tracking (meaning you can never target those who don't have Jenova cells or Geostigma Syndrome. You can purchase any of Mind Control's listed power feats, extras and flaws. Sustaining mind control also lets you continue tracking target's minds as a linked effect.
If someone else is using this power to continually track you, you automatically become aware of their mind as well and may attempt to mind control them yourself. If they're within the normal range of your own powers and have a lower corruption score, the amount by which your corruption score exceeds theirs is added to the save DC of your mind control.
Power Feats
-Accurate: You can recognize minds you've detected before, in the same way you can recognize faces.
-Corruption Sense: You know the current corruption score (if any) of each mind you can sense.
-Distance Sense: You know the rough proximity of each mind you can sense.
-Horde: Each time you take this feat, the number of of total minds you can simultaneously track and maintain control of (but not simultaneously *gain* control of) increases by one step along the time and value progression table.
-Vigilance: You may maintain concentration when a target you're tracking moves out of range, regaining your awareness of their presence if they come in range once more.
Extras
-Duration (+1): Your mind control's effects have a duration of Sustained (Lasting). You can't concentrate on subjects that are out of range or maintain any kind of mental link, but they continue to obey the commands they've been given.
Drawback: Disturbing
Your power rank applies as a penalty on all social interaction skill checks.

UNDYING
(1 pt. per rank, Corruption 6)
You gain Regeneration [Resurrection] at your power rank. You can use some of these ranks to increase the bonus on the recovery checks made to resurrect yourself (these checks do not benefit from any power that boosts normal recovery checks).
Drawback: Dark Rebirth
Whenever you successfully resurrect, you permanently gain a point of corruption.

UNSTOPPABLE (3 pts per rank, Corruption 1)
You gain Impervious Protection and Regeneration at your power rank. You may only use your Regeneration ranks to improve your Recovery Bonus and Recovery Rate. Subtract your power rank from the damage bonus of enemy attacks when determining knockback distance.
Drawback: Numb to the World
Your power rank applies as a penalty to all Notice checks you make. This penalty doubles when making checks against someone who's deliberately trying to avoid being noticed by you.

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