Complete (proofed, typeset, most artwork added in):
.- First Chapter.
.- Generic Archetype Abilities
.- Innate Powers
.- Psionics
.- Cybernetics.
In Process:
.- Domain Control Powers
To Do
.- Gear / Ability Modification
.- Back of Book
Total Complete Pages: 200
On Master TODO List
This will be somewhat cryptic--it's from my files so I'm not amplifying a lot here.
1. Add vehicle gat
2. Warlock/witchcraft (add male name)
3. Justify followers with domain control
4. Color biker pic
5. Color super size pic
6. Add 3 energy attack pics (Santiago)
7. Commission 5 - 10 more innate power pics (elance)?
8. Add 'missile/rocket' to gear
9. Figure out staff / tonfa gear
10. Check RA values for Psionics
11. Add table for combat mods to power mods
12. Add indirect fire to power mods (several levels)
13. Check for sensory link / driver / drone for battle beast (if you must drive it, it's cheaper)
14. Commission several characters (5-10?) with "action shots"--color foreground, black and white action background for Psionics and domain control
15. Add benchmark to back of book
16. Figure out scale grapple score rules (put them in back of book)
17. Add resisted attack mods for negative damage mods to back of book
18. Add parabolic hearing to cybernetics
17. Several pics for gear (weapons, armor, etc.) elance?
19. Several (3-5) pics for power mod (elance)?
20. Two covers (think this is 2 books)
To consider:
1. Shotgun squid for cyber?
2. Oracle gear for cyber?
3. Total communication compromise (quantum decrypters) for cyber
4. Sensory drones for cyber? Will "drone" work?
5. Cyber Built, etc (plastic surgery bronzed) How does this work?
6. Time control RA to slow people down? How would it work? Would time slowed ppl take less damage?
1. Note that Fast Co bonus adds to grapple
2. Fix Seduce L4
3. Gray out SHARP's 2nd line
4. Gray out BRAINIAC 2nd line
5. Fix Bullet Time Cost (GAT List)
Define rolls / results for Mysticism.
Takeaway
The book is very, very close to completion. Using Worm characters to "playtest" supers was very effective at finding weak-points in the rules. We could keep doing that indefinitely. I'd like to do "a few more" character builds--but we're in much better shape than I thought we'd be by this point.
.- Total Knowledge: made roll (skill-5) is like a PER roll made by 10.
Add banishing to Warlock.
'Lying to Telepaths' should be -1 per point of RES-10
1. Get Mod Points out of Cyber and Fast Company (Cyber Eye and FC gear)
2. Get Mod Points out of "Cool gear" in GATS
The book is very, very close to completion. Using Worm characters to "playtest" supers was very effective at finding weak-points in the rules. We could keep doing that indefinitely. I'd like to do "a few more" character builds--but we're in much better shape than I thought we'd be by this point.
This work has been on-going for ... perhaps ... six or more years. In a sense it's been underway since I first tried to "rationalize" the set of JAGS printed rules back in around 2003 or '04 and failed spectacularly. This will be a major personal accomplishment / milestone.
Not sure if this has come up much, but one issue I had with some of the rules was the power-boost gained by buying larger size. While being bigger = more damaging makes sense from a purely logical POV, both Have Not and Supers aren't purely logical and from a point-buy POV, buying a bigger character gives essentially a discount on doing more damage and being tougher when buying any other powers. Trying to make a playably tough rabbit-sized mutant field mouse that breathes plasma-blasts ends up being difficult and being a smaller target/easier to hide doesn't seem to really offset the cost ratio differences. It's a... potentially very specific concern, but one that's bugged me for a bit though I assume there are a minimum number of players making physically tiny characters for combat settings.
ReplyDeleteAlso: Yes, whatever it is, include shotgun squid. Somehow. Somewhere. Absolutely.
And so that it's not just a complaint+demand comment: The Have-Not and Wonderland settings are two of the best, most creative, most genuinely interesting (and in the case of Wonderland one of the best examples of having the game mechanics represent an unusual experience AND of having a playably interesting and actually non-arbitrary paradoxical element re: the general the more you know, the more at risk you are) and the Fast Company set-up is a great representation of action-movie physics particularly since it's in a way that can be incorporated into a group of characters where not all are action movie protagonists.
Well done on all sorts of the work. Thumbs up.
Hah--thanks. Let me address a couple of things.
Delete1. Size. I'm not sure exactly which cut of the rules you have to look at--but in the current (unpublished) set:
(a) to be big or small you pay a cost (positive for small as you are hard to see / hit) and *negative* for large (easier to hit).
(b) You THEN have a choice to sell stats (small--but only if you want) or buy stats (LARGE)--but, again, only if you choose.
You can be big or small with EXACTLY the same stats you otherwise had.
We decoupled these for a few reasons:
1. Very large energy bodies or the like. It's possible to be "big" without being super-strong or tough.
2. Big things that are not "appropriately" tough. If the GM wants a 3-story giant with stats like a 20' tall man, who are we to argue?
3. Small power-houses: very good--so it's kinda expensive--but you can build one.
So it's a two-step process now.
2. Shotgun S.Q.U.I.D. -- we had these in the first cut of JAGS Cybernetics. a SQUID is a Super Conducting Quantum Interfering Device. They are used (at very low range) to read micro-changes in current in the human brain.
In the cyber-system they work as a "shotgun microphone"--at range--and can "pulse" to MAKE changes in the system. Such a device allows characters to "take over computers" and other electronic devices at range.
I took them out of Cybernetics because Domain Control -- Tech Control seemed to do that (and you could declare THAT a cyber-system). I might put it "back in" and reference the other powers because the name is so cool.
3. I'm really glad you like those books. They were a lot of work and we're very, very proud of them!