Supercape (PL13/15) - Supercape (Platinum)

[Supercape]

[floatr][/floatr]Player Name: Supercape
Character Name: Supercape
Power Level: 13/15 (250/250 PP) [352]
Trade-Offs: -5 Defense / +5 Toughness
Unspent PP: 0
Progress to Orichalcum Status: 207/180

In Brief: Professor and polymath, who has cracked quantum forces with his mind. Not good with crowds, he dons a particularly spiffy and enormous cape to hide behind when fighting crime.

Alternate Identity: Quentin Quill
Identity: Secret
Birthplace: London, United Kingdom
Occupation: Lecturer / Professor
Affiliations: Cambridge University (former), Freedom City University (current)
Family: All Deceased

Age: 40
Apparent Age: 35
Gender: Male
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 210 lbs.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Blonde

Description: A slightly stocky chap who is not in great shape but still robust. Supercape wears a baggy, flowing costume and enormous cape that change colour and cut at his will. He tends to favour blue and white colouration.

History: Quentin was a fairly charming academic/polymath with some radical ideas on quantum mechanics and cognition. He studied at Cambridge university and taught there, until his radical ideas lead to something "clicking". He found himself able to psychically sense and manipulate on the sub-atomic scale. Quentin immediately started blabbing about his idea's, which lead to the University electing not to continue with his employment.

So, Quentin has come to Freedom City to teach. On the outside, he lives the life of a comfortable academic. However, he realises he now has considerable power, and feels morally obliged to use it for good. Whilst he is a charming man and good debater on one to one situations, he has never liked crowds or, worse, being idolised. To compensate for this (?) flaw, he dashes into action wearing a spiffy and massive cape which frequently changes hue and cut. Excellent to hide behind.

Personality & Motivation: Supercape is at heart an academic with curiosity and intellectual rigour at heart. He is also a loyal and honest man. He has a strongly held sense of ethics based on utilatirianism. Whilst the "end justifies the means" technically, he is more akin to Mr. Spock than the Punisher. He dislikes violence and destruction and will always attempt to use reason and diplomacy. That's logically ethical to his mind. However, he is a kindly, bumbling buffoon rather than a cold logical machine.

Powers & Tactics: Supercape has the psychic ability to perceive mass and energy and manipulate atomics telekenetically. This doesn't mean he can actually move matter, but he is able to affect these forces directly. Most usually, this means nudging a few atoms to degrade and releasing a large amount of different types of EM radiation. He can bathe individuals in this radiation, or cause explosions of light and energy. By setting up unstable molecules ready to degrade, he can create "molecular mines" that are triggered by various forces.

In addition, he can manipulate the forces between atoms, to strengthen or weaken them - altering inanimate objects from solid to liquid to gas . The latter power is precise and selective, meaning he can cause expansion and contraction of objects as the atomic forces alter (as if they had been heated or cooled), or choose just to affect certain molecules in the substance, effectively "distilling" the target.

Supercape has the ability to create “Quantum Matterâ€, a crystalline substance that is extremely tough and durable. Quantum matter is normally very stable, but in many ways doesn’t technically exist. If it is observed or analysed (particularly by somebody who is scientific) it can cease to be. Whilst Quantum Matter is extremely durable, even a slight crack will cause it to shatter completely, like a crystal or glass.

Supercape protects himself with an quantum field. Normally this is an invisible (until struck) shield of energy (quantum energy, of course!). However, he can alter the modulation of this field, to either turn into a reflective, mirror like surface (that reflects energy back), or a field that is less strong, working by “phasing†him, allowing him to move through solid objects, and (more importantly for the space traveller) recycling oxygen molecules.

Tactically, Supercape is a cautious, cerebral hero, prone to doubt and inactivity, which can make him ineffectual. He prefers to think out a problem than fight it directly. When forced to fight, he will hold back from his full force in most cases. He tends to use his toxic irradiation powers sparingly, and only rarely will he unleash the nuclear explosive power he can muster.

---

Complications:
Academic Reputation: Quentin is quite vain about his academic credentials, and whilst his life is fairly leisurely, he has the political infighting of the university to contend with, and debates to win.
Man of Inaction / Monologue: Supercape loves a monologue and a debate, even if the timing is highly inappropriate. Engaging an enemy in an academic debate is worth stopping any fight for. In addition, he tends to use the maxim "think before you act" to the extreme, making him indecisive at times.
Pomfretphobia ever since Dr Simian blasted his mind with the amazing Idiot Beam, Supercape has had a fear of Monkeys and Apes. And of becoming an Idiot.
Secret Shame Over ID: Supercape is absolutely petrified of his secret ID being revealed. He thinks it would mean the end of his cosy little academic career, and he is secretly ashamed of his antics and "ridiculous" cape.
Don’t look to closely…: Quantum Matter is a curious substance. If perfectly observed (by someone with the right instruments or supersenses, and with adequate INT or knowledge skills) it’s wave-function collapses in on itself and it ceases to exist (if it did anyway?).


Abilities: 4 + 0 + 4 + 10 + 10 + 2 = 30PP
Strength: 14 (+1)
Dexterity: 10 (+0)
Constitution: 14 (+2)
Intelligence: 20 (+5)
Wisdom: 20 (+5)
Charisma: 12 (+1)


Combat: 8 + 16 = 24PP
Initiative: +0
Attack: +4
Grapple: +6
Defense: +8 (+8 Base, +0 Dodge Focus), +4 Flat-Footed
Knockback: -9/-1


Saving Throws: 8 + 5 + 13 = 26PP
Toughness: +18/+2 (+2 Con, +10 Forcefield, +6 Supercape)
Fortitude: +10 (+2 Con, +8)
Reflex: +5 (+0 Dex, +5)
Will: +18 (+4 Wis, +15)


Skills: 76R = 19PP
Concentration 15 (+20)
Computers 2 (+7)
Diplomacy 9 (+10)
Disguise 0/4 [from costume] (+5)
Knowledge (Behavioral Sciences) 5 (+10)
Knowledge (Earth Sciences) 5 (+10)
Knowledge (Life Sciences) 10 (+15)
Knowledge (Physical Sciences) 15 (+20)
Languages 3 (English [Native], French, German, Latin)
Medicine 2 (+7)
Notice 10 (+15)


Feats: 3PP
Benefit 1 ( Wealth 1)
Equipment 0 (+1 Veteran Reward)
Luck 2
 

The Lab (HQ) [5EP]

Powers: 78 + 20 + 24 + 1 + 19 + 6 = 148PP

Atomic Control 31.5 (71PP Array, Feats: Alternative Power 7) [78PP]

Base Power: Blast 13 (Extras: Penetrating, Range [Perception], Secondary Effect ["Afterglow"]; Feats: Affects Insubstantial 2, Incurable,, Precise, Subtle, Variable Descriptor [Any Electromagnetic]) [71PP] (Radiation Control)

Alternate Power: Blast 13 (Extras: Area [Targeted, Burst, 20-650ft radius], Range [Perception], Feats: Affects Insubstantial 2, Incurable,, Progression: Decrease Area 9, Progression Increase Area 3 (x10), Subtle, Triggered 2, Variable Descriptor [Any Electromagnetic]) [71PP] (Nuclear Explosion)

Alternate Power: [26 + 44 = 70PP]
Communication 20 (Radio, "Anywhere In The Universe," Feats: Dimensional 2 [Alternate Realities], Indirect 3, Variable Descriptor [Any Electromagnetic]) [26PP] plus ESP 20 (Radio Senses, "Anywhere In The Universe," Extras: Duration [sustained], Feats: Dimensional 2 [Alternate Realities], Subtle 2) [44PP] (Quantum Tunnel)

Alternate Power: Create Object 13 (13 cubes, STR 60 [Heavy Load: 50 tons], Toughness +13, Extras: Duration [Continuous], Impervious, Range [Perception], Feats: Affects Insubstantial 2, Innate, Precise, Stationary, Subtle, Variable Descriptor [different hues and translucency. Drawbacks: Any damage (injury) will cause shattering, equal to a “disabled†condition) [67PP] (Quantum Matter)

Alternate Power: Dazzle 13 (Radio & Visual Senses, Extras: Area [General, Burst], Range [Perception], Feats: Feature [Can choose to Dazzle individual senses instead of all senses of a given type] , Progression [Area] 3 [600ft radius], Subtle, Triggered 2) [67PP] (Radiation Pulse)

Alternate Power: Nauseate 13 (Extras: Poison (environmental radiation immunity as opposed to poison immunity resists this power), Range 2 [Perception], Feats: Affects Insubstantial 2, Incurable, Precise, Reversible, Subtle) [71PP] (Irradiate)

Alternate Power: Transform 11 (Change Matter States of Inanimate Objects [solid, Liquid, Gas], 1000 lbs., Extras: Affects Objects (only) (+0), Duration [Continuous], Range [Perception], Feats: Precise, Progression 2 (up to 12,500lbs), Selective [Only certain types of molecules in the material], Subtle) [71PP] (Atomic Bond Manipulation)

Alternate Power: Teleport 20 ("Anywhere In The Universe," Extras: Accurate, Linked [Dimensional Movement], Flaws: Limited [Long-Range / Full Action], Feats: Change Velocity, Change Direction, Progression [Cargo] 6 [10,000 lbs.]) [47PP] + linked Super-Movement 5 (Dimensional Movement 2 [Any Non-Mystic], Temporal Movement 3 [Any Time], Extras: Linked [Teleport], Feats: Progression (Dimensional Move) 6 [10,000lbs], Progression (Temporal Move) 6 [10,000lbs]) [10PP] (Quantum Entaglement) [48+ 22 = 70PP]
Device 5 (25PP Container, Flaws: Hard-To-Lose) [20PP] (Supercape)

Atomic Force Control 0 (Feats: Alternate Power) [1PP]

Alternate Power: Strike 12 (Extras: Aura, Duration 2 [sustained], Feats: Accurate 4, Affect Insubstantial 2, Extended Reach 1, Incurable, Selective) [69PP] + Linked Light Control 2 (Bright Light, 10’ Radius Flaws Range (Personal)) (Glowing Cape, Quantum, Radiation) [1PP]
Enhanced Disguise 1 (+4 to Disguise skill) [1PP]

Features 3 (Environmental Adaptation [Zero Gravity], Quick Change 2) [3PP]

Flight 4 (100mph / 1,000ft per Move Action, Feats: Subtle) [9PP]

Immunity 5 (All Environments ) [7PP]

Protection 6 [6PP]

Force Field Array 11 ( 22 PP Array Feats Alternate Power 2) [24PP] (Quantum Fields)

Base Power: Force Field 10 (Quantum Shield; Extras: Impervious Feats: Selective, Subtle) {22PP }

Alternate Power: Force Field 10 (Quantum Mirror; Extras: Impervious (+1), Reflective (+1)Flaws: Impervious and Reflective only against energy attacks Feats: Selective, Second Chance (Laser Blast) ) {22PP}

Alternate Power: Force Field 10 (Phased Shield; Feats: Subtle, Selective[ b]) linked with Immunity 2 [Suffocation (all); Extras: Sustained Duration (+0)) linked with Super Movement 3 (Permeate 3 (Full movement)) {12+2+6=20PP }
Immunity 1 (Own Powers) [1PP]

Super-Senses 19 (Accurate, Analytical, Extended [100ft Notice Increments], Tracking Radio Senses [All], Counters Concealment [All Radio Senses], Detect Dimensional 1, Detect EM Radiation 3 [Radio], Detect Quantum 1, Detect Temporal 1, Radar [Radio], Radio) [19PP] (Energy Sense)

Super-Senses 6 (Gravitic Blindsight [Mental], Extras: Accurate, Acute, Radius, Ranged) [6PP] (Atomic Sense [Gravity/Mass])


Drawbacks: -0PP
None


DC Block:

ATTACK RANGE SAVE EFFECT

Unarmed Touch DC17 Toughness (Staged) Damage (Physical)

Atomic Bond Control Perception/Area DC21 Fortitude Transformed

Atomic Unbonding Perception DC23 Fortitude (Staged) Drain Toughness

Irradiate Perception DC23 Fortitude (Staged) Sickened/Nauseated/Helpless

Radiation Burst Perception/Area DC28 Toughness (Staged) Damage (Energy)

Radiation Control Perception DC28 Toughness (Staged) Damage (Energy)

Radiation Pulse Perception/Area DC23 Reflex No Effect

DC23 Fortitude Dazzle Radio+Visual

Strike Aura Touch DC27 Toughness Damage (Energy)

Totals: Abilities (30) + Combat (24) + Saving Throws (26) + Skills (19) + Feats (3) + Powers (148) - Drawbacks (0) = 250/250 Power Points Edited January 24, 2014 by AvengerAssembled
+3pp for December

[Avenger Assembled]

You need to bring the sheet in line with the template. Look at other, completed sheets if it's a problem. (i.e.; you need to bold powers, alphabetize and bold skills, and the like.) Use correct names for powers and extras: Impervious is the name of an extra on Create Object, not 'Custom'.

I'm leery of new characters coming in with Perception-range super-maxed out I blow you up powers. Think about giving him actual combat feats, so he can do more than whiff against any character with a decent Toughness and Evasion.

The background is good stuff. Thumbs up for Jeremy Bentham and his severed mummy head. But isn't utilitarianism (I am not the philosophy major in my family) also a very Iron Age philosophy? (i.e; saving the many over the one does mean you might blow up the supervillain when no one's looking. Or hostage situations.)

Is his loud skepticism going to be a problem given the large numbers of divinely-influenced characters we have running around?

[Supercape]

Oops, I cut and paste and it turned non-bolded, non italic for some reason, I will readjust!

Re: Background. Yes, I can see it could be seen as Iron Age, but that's not how I envisage him. Whilst technically the ends justify the means, he is still an upright/uptight monologue type of guy. In some ways, he would react with great antipathy towards anything Iron-Age - like a raging religious fanatic who believes divine authority makes him automatically right, or even a vigilante who is reacting more to rage than anything else. I'm thinking more Mr. Spock than the Punisher. I hope that makes sense.

Yes, his loud skepticism is going to be a problem. Hopefully in a good way. He would view divinely influenced characters as something else, not gods. As above, they hold no moral authority. Judge a man by the facts!. Again, this is more about monologues, debates and complications than aiming to screw up the game.

Re: Powers. I can understand the issues here. I don't want to make an academic professor a good fighter however (maybe when he has had some fights). Hence the envisaged perception range powers. The AoE radation bursts are something that feel quite key to me however (excite an atom, it go boom). More like a pulse of energy / light than a destructive force. I have found AoE powers can be quite fun from a rpg perspective - they are not to be used lightly.

Could I ask advice: I could rejig quite happily in a couple of ways:

1. Make them ranged powers, and buy some Accurate feats, meaning he would have a high attack bonus using his own powers (this fits. As I said, I don't see him as a skilled fighter, but he could be nifty with his powers)

2. Loose some of the other extra's, like penetrating, reducing cost of powers, and ultimately lowering disintegrate power rank.

3. Something else entirely!

[Dr Archeville]

Please do not use the format for powers given in the 3E book. Use the formal we use here.

I.e., his Atomic Bonding power should be written as

Create Object 10 (Atomic Bonding; Extras: Impervious, Range [Perception]; Power Feats: Affects Insubstantial 2, Stationary, Subtle) [44pp]

Also, it is preferred that you edit the char sheet in the first post of the thread, then list a summary of any changes you've made in latter posts, rather than re-posting an entirely new edited sheet.

[Supercape]

AH Cheers. Sorry for my litany of mistakes.

AT this point, it seems reworked enough for a complete repost - is that advisable or persue with this thread?

[Dr Archeville]

Edit the first post in this thread, please.

[N/A]

OK, I went ahead and edited the sheet a bit, putting some things in alphabetical order and such. It should be more in line with the rest of them now.

As of Ultimate Power, you don't need the Action extra for Super-Senses. They don't cost any actions to use aside from those normally required of Notice and Search checks. So he's got some more PP to play with.

You'll also notice some "X"s inside his Super-Senses. Those are placeholders. You have to choose which of the 6 M&M sense types each of those Detects belongs to - Visual, Audio, Olfactory, Tactile, Mental, or Radio.

As far as the Area attacks go, I know Explosions are bigger than Bursts, but they're also a massive pain in the ass for GMs, because without a battlemat right in front of everyone, we tend to play a little fast-&-loose with combat positioning. And trying to figure out exactly how far away a given enemy or group of enemies is from the epicenter of an Explosion is next to impossible.

You might want to replace his Profession skill with Perform (Oratory). Profession is damned near useless with our Wealth system, and Oratory, along with his Knowledge skills, should cover everything he needs to know as a university professor.

I greatly appreciate that you bought some Attack bonus even though his powers are all Perception-range, but why no Reflex save? I know it's the least useful saving throw, but having none smells uncomfortably of point-shaving.

Just to make sure you're aware of how certain powers on your sheet would work as they stand now:

Neither his Flight, Force Field, or Teleport are Subtle. So there will be some very obvious sign of all of them while they're active - examples could include a glow or shimmer around his body while the force field is up, or a bright contrail or loud gust of wind streaking behind him as he flies.

That seems like an odd choice, when all of his attack powers are Subtle.

Yes, his loud skepticism is going to be a problem. Hopefully in a good way. He would view divinely influenced characters as something else, not gods. As above, they hold no moral authority. Judge a man by the facts!. Again, this is more about monologues, debates and complications than aiming to screw up the game.

OK, so the same way Doktor Archeville views all "magic" as "science we haven't figured out yet." That's fine.

Re: Powers. I can understand the issues here. I don't want to make an academic professor a good fighter however (maybe when he has had some fights). Hence the envisaged perception range powers. The AoE radation bursts are something that feel quite key to me however (excite an atom, it go boom). More like a pulse of energy / light than a destructive force. I have found AoE powers can be quite fun from a rpg perspective - they are not to be used lightly.

+4 base Attack hardly makes him a "good fighter." That's about as high as it could "reasonably" go for someone without combat training. The vast majority of "average people" in the world are PL0 Bystanders, with +0 in everything. Rank-&-file criminals and beat cops have Attack and Defense scores in the +2-3 range. Riot cops and elite soldiers (Special Forces, SEALs, etc.) top out around +5-6 (which is part of why our "low-level" hero slot is PL7). Check out the NPC templates in the back of the core book to see what I'm talking about.

Of course, it's a superhero genre convention that pretty much every hero can hold their own in a fight to some degree, regardless of how much of a badass they're supposed to be. So don't worry, +4 Attack and +6 Defense for a "relative non-combatant" is fine.

Could I ask advice: I could rejig quite happily in a couple of ways:

1. Make them ranged powers, and buy some Accurate feats, meaning he would have a high attack bonus using his own powers (this fits. As I said, I don't see him as a skilled fighter, but he could be nifty with his powers)

2. Loose some of the other extra's, like penetrating, reducing cost of powers, and ultimately lowering disintegrate power rank.

3. Something else entirely!

Perception-range powers are formidable, but hardly overpowered. I've been proving that for over a year now. Ranged powers and Perception powers each have their own advantages and disadvantages.

Perception powers have a range limited only by your Accurate senses. Ranged powers, by contrast, have a maximum range of (power rank)x100ft (which seems really far, until you take into account the sheer scale of some M&M battlefields thanks to movement powers), and an effective range far lower than that (since they have 10 increments of [power rank]x10ft, and you suffer -2 Attack for every increment past the first between you and your target). The Improved Range and Progression feats can help, but no Ranged power will ever have the...well, range of a Perception power (at least, not without spending more PP on those feats than they would have just adding the +Perception extra in the first place).

Perception powers effectively have 1 rank of the Indirect feat for free, since a transparent barrier doesn't stop them (and the meaning of "transparent" can vary greatly in a game where Super-Senses are available). They cut down on the random rolling, which gives the dice fewer chances to screw you. And they ruin a high Defense character's day.

Ranged powers, on the other hand, can benefit from the bonus damage of critical hits, Autofire, and Power Attack. Being caught flat-footed as someone's laying into you with one or more of those is often worse than being automatically hit by a Perception attack. And, of course, an Accurate Ranged power will almost always be cheaper than a Perception power.

[N/A]

Oh, I forgot to mention - as it stands now, his Detect Energy power will let him know that there is "energy" somewhere around him. But without +Accurate, it won't tell him exactly where (he'll have to Search for it), and without +Acute, he won't have any idea what type - it'll all "look" the same to him. I don't know if that's what you intended or not.

And if he wants to get a momentary "PING!" when someone uses Energy-based powers in the vicinity, that's Energy Awareness (Awareness is Radius and Ranged by default - it has to be, in order to function), not Detect Energy (which he has to consciously choose to use).

[Supercape]

Huge thankyou for that. Very helpful.

May I ask a few questions?

Re: Supersenses. I thought there was an "esoteric" category aswell, but I guess not! In which case, I am not entirely sure which category to put his powers. The energy sense might be best thought of as Radio I guess. The Mass/Gravity sense feels more mental (he is just kind of aware of atoms and mass). I am presuming as its accurate, he can use this to navigate (that was the intention anyway, like a very advanced form of blindsight).

Re: Explosions. No qualm here, I chose that as it fitted better conceptually, but I know what a pain that can be (playing it PnP we used to just give guestimates of how close people would be in). Would changing to burst be ok?

Profession can be replaced no problem - I was thinking of it terms of a skill rather than wealth but If the game isnt really using these skills... I wouldn't be too keen on Perform (Orate), maybe 2 ranks only, as one of his RP features is not particularly liking big crowds (Allthough liking and being able to do it are not always the same!)

Why no reflex save? Well, because he is not a fighter, getting on to middle aged, and just not that sprightly I guess. I was pondering even reducing his Dex to 8 (thoughts on that). I could push it up reflex a point or two maybe?

Re Subtle. I was thinking here that the point of enemation was subtle rather than the effect. So, if he mentally manipulates some quantum forces, it isnt obvious it comes from him (unless someone has some nifty special senses that see some quantum flux strings or whatever enemating from him). The actual effect I would like to be quite obvious, shining comic book radiation of one form or another. I hope this is a reasonable use of subtle? It explains why his forcefield, flight, teleport are all unsubtle. I was toying with using the optional "Noticible" drawback making them superobvious, but this felt like point-gaming.

Perception is very much how I see his power. Sense an atom, manipulate it, effect.

Any further advice?

At the moment i'm thinking scrapping Profession skill (providing its not being used in the game at all), plumping 2 ranks into Perform (Orate), saving 1 PP

With that, and the two reserve PP from the senses, giving him +2 Reflex and Making his energy sense acute (which it should be, really).

Overall, i'm conceptually thinking about putting up his combat skills and saves with experience (more pp). He has all the powers he wants (maybe energy sense could be accurate, and ultimately he would bump up his radiation control powers at PL 11). Further pp's representing him maturing from a "what's this fighting all about" inexperienced hero, to one with some actual skill.

[Supercape]

Actually, thinking about it, it might be best to plump all 3 spare PPs into making energy sense acute and accurate. That fits him a lot better I think.

It leaves reflex at +0. This fits conceptually (it will be pumped up if/when he gains further pps as he becomes more experienced in fighting). Would that be acceptable?

[N/A]

Huge thankyou for that. Very helpful.

May I ask a few questions?

Re: Supersenses. I thought there was an "esoteric" category aswell, but I guess not!

Not post-Ultimate Power.

In which case, I am not entirely sure which category to put his powers. The energy sense might be best thought of as Radio I guess. The Mass/Gravity sense feels more mental (he is just kind of aware of atoms and mass). I am presuming as its accurate, he can use this to navigate (that was the intention anyway, like a very advanced form of blindsight).

+Accurate means that he can pinpoint the location of the targets he Detects accurately enough to target them in combat. Whether or not he can "navigate" by that sense depends on what he's Detecting, and how much (if any) of it is in the vicinity.

Honestly, whichever type you want is probably fine. It matters mainly because we need to know what sort of Concealment/Dazzle/Illusion/Obscure/etc. powers interfere with them.

It also matters because some sense types have certain Super-Sense extras by default. Infravision costs 1PP instead of 5PP because Visual senses are already +Accurate, +Acute, and +Ranged. But any Concealment/Dazzle/etc. that hits Visual senses hits Infravision along with Normal Vision.

Visual Sense Type

Default Extras: +Accurate, +Acute, +Ranged.

PCs start with: Normal Vision.

Examples of other Visual Senses: Infravision (infrared spectrum), Ultravision (ultraviolet spectrum).

Audio Sense Type

Default Extras: +Acute, +Radius, +Ranged.

PCs start with: Normal Hearing.

Examples of other Audio Senses: Ultrasonic Hearing, Sonar (Ultrasonic Hearing, +Accurate, 3PP).

Olfactory Sense Type (Smell/Taste)

Default Extras: +Radius, +Ranged.

PCs start with: Normal Olfactory.

Tactile Sense Type

Default Extras: +Accurate, +Acute, +Radius.

PCs start with: Normal Touch.

Examples of other Tactile Senses: Tremorsense (Tactile, +Ranged, 2PP).

Mental Sense Type

Default Extras: None.

PCs start with: Normal Mental (the byproduct of having INT, WIS, and CHA all at 1+, and the reason you have the Sense Motive skill).

Radio Sense Type

Default Extras: +Acute, +Radius, +Ranged.

PCs start with: None.

Examples of Radio Senses: Radio (1PP, lets you pick up radio signals like an antenna), Radar (Radio, +Accurate, 3PP).

So, as you can see, when choosing a sense type for a Detect, there's a tradeoff. If you choose "Visual," then you get a bunch of Super-Sense extras "for free," but the sense also gets taken out by the most common form of sensory powers, Visual. If you choose "Mental," it starts with none of the Super-Sense extras by default, but almost nothing Conceals or Obscures against Mental senses.

Re: Explosions. No qualm here, I chose that as it fitted better conceptually, but I know what a pain that can be (playing it PnP we used to just give guestimates of how close people would be in). Would changing to burst be ok?

Changing it to a Burst-type area would be fantastic.

Also, I noted that all his +Area powers were General-type Areas (no attack roll, Reflex save for 1/2 damage), because I assumed that was the case. If any of them are supposed to be Targeted-type Areas (no Reflex save, one attack roll for everyone in the AoE), go ahead and note that instead.

Profession can be replaced no problem - I was thinking of it terms of a skill rather than wealth but If the game isnt really using these skills... I wouldn't be too keen on Perform (Orate), maybe 2 ranks only, as one of his RP features is not particularly liking big crowds (Allthough liking and being able to do it are not always the same!)

The Profession skill is in the game. It just doesn't really do anything, unless it covers something skills which actually do something don't already cover (Craft, Knowledge, Perform, etc.). I'd never ask a lawyer character to buy Profession (Lawyer) when he could just buy Diplomacy, Knowledge (Civics, maybe Business and History), and maybe Intimidate, and call it a day.

Why no reflex save? Well, because he is not a fighter, getting on to middle aged, and just not that sprightly I guess. I was pondering even reducing his Dex to 8 (thoughts on that). I could push it up reflex a point or two maybe?

Anything is better than nothing.

Re Subtle. I was thinking here that the point of enemation was subtle rather than the effect. So, if he mentally manipulates some quantum forces, it isnt obvious it comes from him (unless someone has some nifty special senses that see some quantum flux strings or whatever enemating from him). The actual effect I would like to be quite obvious, shining comic book radiation of one form or another. I hope this is a reasonable use of subtle? It explains why his forcefield, flight, teleport are all unsubtle. I was toying with using the optional "Noticible" drawback making them superobvious, but this felt like point-gaming.

-Noticeable can only be applied to effects which aren't already Noticeable by default - Permanent and Continuous duration powers, +Mental sensory powers, etc.

Your understanding of +Subtle as it applies to attack powers is pretty much spot-on.

Some feats and extras vary a little in their meaning from one power to the next, which is something that's described in their individual power entries in Ultimate Power. Superman is the best example in comics of +Subtle Flight. It's not obvious that he's flying until you actually see him in the air.

Perception is very much how I see his power. Sense an atom, manipulate it, effect.

Any further advice?

At the moment i'm thinking scrapping Profession skill (providing its not being used in the game at all), plumping 2 ranks into Perform (Orate), saving 1 PP

With that, and the two reserve PP from the senses, giving him +2 Reflex and Making his energy sense acute (which it should be, really).

Overall, i'm conceptually thinking about putting up his combat skills and saves with experience (more pp). He has all the powers he wants (maybe energy sense could be accurate, and ultimately he would bump up his radiation control powers at PL 11). Further pp's representing him maturing from a "what's this fighting all about" inexperienced hero, to one with some actual skill.

From a purely strategic point of view, I'd consider freeing up a point somewhere to make that Detect Energy +Acute, so he could tell the difference between heat, microwaves, radio waves, x-rays, etc.

[Supercape]

Thanks again. Supersense allways defeated me.

OK. So the best way I can think of his supersenses is:

A "mental" Gravity/Mass sense:

Detect/Ranged (2), Radius (1), Acute (1), Accurate (2) = 6

A "radio" Energy sense

Detect (1), Accurate (2) = 3 but isnt this just a radar?

Or should this be a mental sense as per the Gravity/Mass sense, allowing him to sense where energy is and what energy it is?

[N/A]

You want him to be able to Detect "energy," but not to perceive any fine detail about it or be able to differentiate different energy types? Huh. Well, it's your character.

Mental and Radio would both make sense as sense types for them. If he's detecting "energy," i.e., parts of the electromagnetic spectrum, then it would make perfect sense for that awareness to be Radio-based. But Mental also works, if he "just knows it's there." It's up to you.

+Ranged is just another Super-Sense extra, for Detect or any other sense power. No need to list it separate from the other extras.

What exactly is his "Detect Gravity/Mass" sense supposed to let him perceive? What are you trying to accomplish with that power?

[Supercape]

Thanks for your replies.

Ok, ill tell you what I am trying to acheive!

I would like him to be aware of energy and mass around him basically. Aware of its nature and its location.

So, these senses I think would be radius, ranged, acute, and accurate.

As to what exactly he is aware of

The gravity/mass thing is like a form of mental spatial awareness: I am lumping them together because all mass has gravity! Its a kind of "atomic sense". So he couldn't read or work out colours, but he could sense there is a lump of heavy metal on the table, navigate "blindly" or sense there is a 200 lbs man-shaped object about to hit him with a club shaped heavy object.

The energy sense is similar. He could see invisible force fields, electic currents, radiowaves, power cells, robots, etc.

Does that help?

[N/A]

OK, so the Detect Gravity/Mass is basically a form of "blindsight" that lets him perceive, and navigate by, solid matter. Gotcha. Yeah, that makes sense, and it sounds fine to me. No colors, since that's a function of Normal Vision (which is mostly the "visual color" part of the EM spectrum), and he wouldn't be able to read ink on paper, but he'd be fine for moving around and targeting non-Insubstantial (rank 3 or 4) foes/objects in combat without penalty (assuming no Concealment against whichever sense type his Detect belongs to).

[Supercape]

THats the gravity/mass thing then! I like the idea of not being able to sense insubstantial things with it! (although it might depend partly on descriptors I guess. But most insubstantial things would be massless).

The Energy sense? It feels more like a radio based sense, +accuracy for 3 PP.However its not a "radar", it just detects energy. Would this be ok?

Cheers again

[N/A]

Yes, that's fine. Radar is an Accurate Radio senses, but not all Accurate Radio senses are Radar.

[Supercape]

Editted, I hope the final time! Thanks for all your help.

[Avenger Assembled]

A thought to chew on:

Why is QQ worried that his superhero career would mean the end of his academic career? It ain't the Marvel Universe, Freedom City likes its heroes. Does he have a jerk dean? Or is that just his insecurities playing out?

In the meantime, APPROVED

[Supercape]

His fear may not be totally routed in reality. He sees flying around in a cape slightly silly for a 40 year old man who up to now was a respectable academic. He is more of the bumbling oxford academic than Reed Richards academic. Does that make sense?

[N/A]

The fluff looks good, the math works out, and everything appears to be in order.

:approved:

I made notes next to his Area powers, showing what type of Area they are. Post-UP, +Area powers are either General (Reflex save for 1/2) or Targeted (one attack roll against everyone in the AoE). When an +Area power is Perception-ranged, however, that changes a bit. For Perception/Area powers, "General" means that they're blocked by concealment (targets in the AoE need to be able to perceive the effect), whereas "Targeted" means that they're blocked by cover (i.e., physical barriers). It seemed like the Dazzle should be General, while the Blast should be Targeted. Let me know if that doesn't make sense, and I'll change it.