Comments/suggestions on character welcome (concept stage)

[Someone]

Hi all. As I'm new in the site, I'll need a character if I want to do anything remotely interesting. So far, I've thought on some concepts I wanted to discuss to make sure they're not too powergame-y and have some rules advices on how to translate those to M&M effects.

The first concept involves a spin into Teleport. I'm sure this concept has appeared somewhere else, but this is inevitable at this point in the history of comics. It involves twin brothers*, one of them shifted to an alternate dimension with special properties. The only way the shifted brother (or sister? Now that would be interesting) can travel back is if the other one travels to the alternate dimension. However, both of them don't need to be in the same spot, so from the point of view of people in the normal world, he simply vanishes – and at the same time, in another location a person with the same properties suddenly appears.

The twin in the alternate dimension, a reflection of the real world similar in many aspects to D&D's Ethereal plane allows moving very quickly and moving through solid objects, so the teleport can reach a considerable distance.

Now in game terms:

-No effect on health and toughness. It'd be cool to simulate it, but there's no easy way to do anything that remotely has the same effect. Fortunately we have an easy way out: the two brothers share a psychic link which includes empathic damage. Pain, wounds and mental effects are transferred and shared between them, so there's no need to do anything special.

-No ability to teleport other people, since they don't have their duplicate in the alternate dimension in a different location – their reflection shares their current position and again simulating it would be kind of tricky.

-Teleporting objects is tricky. I can't allow them to shift items into the alternate dimension, or else when the “teleport†happens he effectively would lose anything the brother in the alternate dimension doesn't have, which is again difficult to model rules wise. Also, there's no reason they won't have different clothes... this needs some work.

Let's say the ability that allows the brothers to exchange their dimensional positions only works if the mass or the properties of the objects they have on themselves is exactly the same; same clothes, etc.

So, how can them steal something? It's not enough if the displaced twin grabs the displaced item and they exchange dimensions – that still would leave the item behind, since only one of them has it!. The whole process, in the game world, would be like this:

a) Shifted brother travels to the item's location

Shifted brother takes the alternate dimension's item's copy and brings it to the real brother's location, but still in the alternate dimension. He leaves it there.

c) Shifted brother travels again to the place where the copy in the normal dimension is.

d) They shift dimensions. The shifted brother appears in the real world, and vice versa. Now both of them have access to one copy of the item.

e) They shift dimensions again. From the point of view of someone at the item's original location and also in game mechanics terms, a guy appeared, grabbed the item and dissapeared (This alternate dimension is acquiring a very definite set of rules)

-The teleport would be the standard power with a bunch of extras and power feats to simulate the unique nature of the “teleporting.†There's potential to make an Array with these effects as alternate powers:

a) ESP. The shifted brother can spy on a far away location.

Super senses (Visual radius), since the shifted brother can watch the one in the real world's back as long they're close

Other effects could be simulated with Second chance feat of a bunch of skills (what one doesn't know or Notice, the other one might), low rank Quickness to mental tasks (two heads are better than one), and some protection or outright Immunity (with duration changed to Sustained) to Trip, Snares and Grapples as they can shift out of those with ease. Trigger to fire Teleport when falling may also be appropriate. As for a way to contribute to damage, instead of some technobabble justification for a Damage power I though on perhaps a reinforced cattle prod with a fusion battery they jury rigged with parts from the lab they work in.

(For added hilarity, they could be brother and sister so they character would seem to change sex every time they teleport. I don't know how appropriate this would be for the site, or if even would be worth a Complication)

As for motivation, it's an easy one. With their connection, being separated in this way is painful/discomforting. After normal science failed to reunite them again, they hang on with super gadgeteers, cosmic power wielders and dimensional travelers looking for a solution to their problem.

So, does anyone have a suggestion on mechanics or name for the character(s)?

(*Relax, this has nothing to do with Duplication)

[Raveled]

I would avoid making them opposite-sex twins. It just leads to squickiness.

Do both siblings have to eat and sleep, even when in the dimension? Or could they take their lunch with them?

How would the twins react to someone trying to save the dimensionally-shifted one? Off the top of my head, I can think of a half-dozen PCs who could build a gate or a spell to go get them.

[Someone]

I would avoid making them opposite-sex twins. It just leads to squickiness.

Probably yes. I'll avoid it for the time being.

Do both siblings have to eat and sleep, even when in the dimension? Or could they take their lunch with them?

Even if you can only eat in the real dimension, it's not too much an obstacle since they can shift freely, and a “must eat twice†complication is entering the realm of the ridiculous so IMO it's best to handwave it, but thanks to point it out – better to mention it in the final application. The sleep one is interesting – either the shifted twin sleeps normally, or the alternate dimension's properties makes it unnecesary. In this last case, I suppose he could warn the other one of danger or do something useful on his own.

This is again difficult to model within the standard rules, so IMO the best solution is that the shifted brother needs to sleep too, and since they're not that paranoid, they usually do it at the same time. If the situation really warrants it, I suppose I could use a hero point with the DM's approval to gain some kind of Danger Sense while sleeping.

How would the twins react to someone trying to save the dimensionally-shifted one? Off the top of my head, I can think of a half-dozen PCs who could build a gate or a spell to go get them.

The point is that they are trying to get rid of their “conditionâ€, so it someone manages to build a gate, they'd be glad. However for the sake of the character lasting more than two posts (“Could you please bring my brother back?†“Sure, here he is†“Thanks!â€) we'll agree this particular alternate dimension is extremely difficult to reach. Managing to reunite both of them would be the natural way to retire the character.

[Cubist]

How did the brothers end up dimensionally-separated in the first place? Maybe there's something Weird, and/or Bad, that happens if they are in the same dimension at the same time. If this is the case, the two-post "bring my brother back?" "sure thing!" deal is merely the start of a whole new plotline…

[Someone]

How did the brothers end up dimensionally-separated in the first place? Maybe there's something Weird, and/or Bad, that happens if they are in the same dimension at the same time. If this is the case, the two-post "bring my brother back?" "sure thing!" deal is merely the start of a whole new plotline…

I was thinking one of those particle accelerator acidents. They're so common, nobody would notice one more of these. Hopefully the federal government will enforce some minimal security procedures on them, the same they finally managed to get those huge vats full of chemicals covered and forced laboratories to buy lids for the genetically engineered animals.

You got me thinking however and gave me a couple ideas. They may have something to do with it. These shared a psychic telepathic link even before they got separated - something that can make exams very easy. So they graduated with high grades, and ended in a place where they couldn't cheat their way out - and one of them entered Watts where it should have been electronvolts. Explosion ensues.

Second, if you can only travel to the alternate dimension by exchanging an equivalent amount of mass, what did enter the real world when the brother affected by the accident got shunted there?. Maybe reuniting both brothers can only be done if you shift the one in the alternate domension with that "something", which may like being here very much...

[Dr Archeville]

You wouldn't need Immunity to Snare: as spelled out in our House Rules, you can teleport out of a Grapple or Snare if you can make a DC 20 Concentration check.