Request: How to hit someone with a bus

[Duckman]

A little background so folks understand... We're doing some playtesting now to familiarize ourselves with the system and get agreement between GMs for a summer con event. As part of that we're doing some simple combats using the predefined heroes and villains.

Last weekend I found myself playing General Zod and confronted by a horde of regular infantry. They weren't going to hurt me but they could annoy my allies so I wanted to take them out as fast as possible. I could easily walk up and punch them out one at a time but given the setting I thought, why not pick up a nearby statue (no busses or light posts handy) and wallop the lot of them. Which led to much consternation and gnashing of teeth as we realized none of us remembered an example of how to do this. We came up with something we were all comfortable with but wanted to see if someone could point us at the proper rules for doing this.

As a side note, Zod does not have any ranks in Improvised Weapon (which is what we really wanted to emulate) so we kind of wondered what penalty, if any, should apply to trying to sweep an area, say a cone or hemisphere, with an object that a hero thinks of as being "light".

[Beleriphon]

As a side note, Zod does not have any ranks in Improvised Weapon (which is what we really wanted to emulate) so we kind of wondered what penalty, if any, should apply to trying to sweep an area, say a cone or hemisphere, with an object that a hero thinks of as being "light".

You basically do a power stunt off of the Damage bonus portion of strength (so basically you get X power points for the AE where X is the Strength score). In Zod's case this would give you 18 points to do a stunt. You could pull of a rank 9 damage effect in a cone for example.

[Mogo]

As a side note, Zod does not have any ranks in Improvised Weapon (which is what we really wanted to emulate) so we kind of wondered what penalty, if any, should apply to trying to sweep an area, say a cone or hemisphere, with an object that a hero thinks of as being "light".

You basically do a power stunt off of the Damage bonus portion of strength (so basically you get X power points for the AE where X is the Strength score). In Zod's case this would give you 18 points to do a stunt. You could pull of a rank 9 damage effect in a cone for example.

I agree here that is how you would do something like this. I really do not have much to add except that "Request: How to hit someone with a bus" was one of the best thread subjects I have ever seen. It made my day.

[Unbeliever]

I don't think I'd even require a power stunt. Picking heavy things up and hitting people with them is part of the benefits of buying Strength as opposed to say, just straight damage. And, I think fatigue is some, not serious but non-trivial, cost on doing things like this.

I'd probably call it an area effect limited by his Strength, PL, and perhaps the material of the object he was using (with +/-2 fudge factor built in). It'd be a little more limited than an ordinary Area effect -- unless the statue is really really big he's only going to be able to hit a certain number of people, perhaps less than he'd be able to if he just had an area effect power.

[Scholz2]

I am with Unbeliever on that one. Using one's environment is one of the great tropes in the genre, and it also serves as sort of check on Defense shifted, invisible or flying characters. I might not be able to hit you with my fists. But I can throw a bus in your general direction thus getting an area attack which might do some damage at least.
The obvious benefit of this is "paid" for by the economy of actions "Move to where bus is, pick up bus. Throw bus." So while the other characters get two attack actions, the bus thrower, get's only one.
Limiting damage ranks to the toughness of the object prevents strength shifted characters from getting too good a benefit. Sure Zod can pick up the bus, but at Toughness 9, he can only do rank 9 damage. So useful against the Flash, or a mob of soldiers, not so useful against the Man of Steel.

[Earth-Two_Kenn]

Sure Zod can pick up the bus, but at Toughness 9, he can only do rank 9 damage. So useful against the Flash, or a mob of soldiers, not so useful against the Man of Steel.

But the people on the street in "Superman II" didn't have the rule book handy.

Step 1: steal a bus.
Step 2: drive bus towards intended victim.
Step 3: push down hard on the accelerator.

Worked for the guy who hit me.

[Furyan]

Step 1: steal a bus.
Step 2: drive bus towards intended victim.
Step 3: push down hard on the accelerator.

Worked for the guy who hit me.

Ouch!