Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Doug McCrae" data-source="post: 5260662" data-attributes="member: 21169">Yes, it's probably more correct to say that PL is relaxed rather than removed.This is an attempt to solve a number of problems with M&M, particularly with regards to balance. As it currently stands M&M encourages a very specific build - lots of PL breakers such as Imp Crit (leading to very high damage but with no ability to increase toughness because it's held in check by PL) and a suite of alternate powers. Alternate powers are incredibly cheap in M&M, leading to a strong temptation to create essentially Green Lantern/Dr Strange with Wolverine's claws.My system is an attempt to allow for a much wider variety of characters.Unfortunately M&M is nowhere near the stage where points are a reliable indicator of power level. Hence I advocate ditching power points. If they don't tell you how powerful a character is then they serve no useful purpose whatsoever, merely take up brainspace, + cause char creation to take longer.My system puts a lot of responsibility on the player. Most of it is just guidelines. The main thing to do is to use Skyrmion, the 'typical' PL 10 character, as a guide. If a char is more powerful than Skyrmion in some areas, he should be less powerful in others. Just how much is a bit trickier to determine.The PL system as it currently stands is much too limiting (in some areas, while allowing too much in others). Some powers that are perfectly reasonable, and also a lot of fun, such as a 'Nova Flame' type of power that can't be used very often, 1/session or even 1/campaign, are impossible under the PL system.A problem that I've struggled with endlessly in rpgs, and particularly superhero games is how to balance a big strong guy with a 'wizard'. It's very similar to the D&D problem of balancing the fighter with the wizard. In 4e, they are equally powerful in combat. I take a somewhat different view (though I've found 4e to be very inspiring in many ways - the suites of 3-9 attack powers that force interesting choices are very much inspired by 4e. I may also flesh out a Second Wind option.) For me non-combat is a significant part of the game and so is combat. So if one PC has very good non-cmbat powers - mind-reading, gadgeteering and the like - then I feel that must be 'paid for' by reduced power in combat. Essentially I'm advocating a system in which all that matters are the end numbers, the final character, and I would like the player to use his own judgement to a large extent.</blockquote>

Verification