Noob questions

[Crush]

Looking to do a duo of equal power. Is Sidekick 25 on a 150 point character OK mechanically?

 

Also, though being 150 points, the character(s) would be PL8 in power. That OK?

 

How does the hero community feel about vigilantism? Not straight killing, but pragmatic heroes who try to stop criminal activities before they start. First time offenders may get a lighter touch depending on what the situation is, but repeat offenders get no quarter. "You've made your bed now lie in it."

[Amelia]

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Looking to do a duo of equal power. Is Sidekick 25 on a 150 point character OK mechanically?

 

Yes. Check out Miss Americana / Cyberknife for an existing PC example.

 

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Also, though being 150 points, the character(s) would be PL8 in power. That OK?

 

You don't have to build up to your true PL caps, so if you want to build them as a pair of PL8s, that's allowed. But since they're technically PL10s, you could also build them both up to PL10 caps. They'd just have fewer points to work with than usual.

 

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How does the hero community feel about vigilantism? Not straight killing, but pragmatic heroes who try to stop criminal activities before they start. First time offenders may get a lighter touch depending on what the situation is, but repeat offenders get no quarter. "You've made your bed now lie in it."

 

I'm not sure I understand what you mean. What does "stopping criminal activities before they start" look like?

 

[KnightDisciple]

As Grumble said, a PL8 built with 150pp is totally fine. A "wider but shallower" build isn't out of place. Our general recommendation is often a PL 10/150pp character, but that's more just for easiest slotting into the broadest number of potential threads, easy math, etc. PL8's doable. The main thing is to decide what PL you're setting your caps at (7, 8, 10, etc), and then ensure you hit your caps. An under-capped character will cause more issues than one that's "built broad".

 

Regarding the question of vigilantism, that's a bit harder to answer. We have characters who fit the traditional comic book archetype of a "vigilante", which is to say characters with no or very low-level actual super-powers, and relying primarily on wit, skill, and gadgets to do the crime-fighting. We have several characters who use fear and intimidation as part of their crime-fighting arsenal.

 

However.

 

They still go after people who've actually committed. (or are in the process of committing) crimes. And they adhere to the same level of force usage and so on that the "brighter" heroes do. 

[Crush]

Thank you for your answers. To answer your question about vigilantism, think Daredevil or Batman. Not on the powers side of things, but the ethics. When your criminal types are less take over the world types and more the drug pushers and muggers. While not going full kill mode, the retribution will be swift and painful. I should note that the characters will not be delighting in this behavior, but are not looking to hear excuses for why that guy is doing bad things again.

 

The reason I ask is that this game is cooperative, and alienating other players would kind of defeat the purpose.

[EternalPhoenix]

Nah, you're probably fine. Traditional Daredevil or Batman is a big part of superheroics. They're grittier stories and heroes, yes, but ultimately they're a part of the same universe. Man, the way you wrote that it was like "Does he want to do Punisher? The Authority? Something worse?" Because those are what we don't do here. The thing to remember is that while DD and Bats are grittier and more proactive, they still wait for the law to be broken before making with the punching. Hell, most of the time they offer their opponents a chance to surrender and turn themselves in.