[Writeups.org] [3E] El Jaguar, Ma Mayhem, Old West guns

[Ghostwise]

Regeneration with Sustained?

Nah, people can run around willy-nilly with their shield on. The first time a shield is clearly seen in the first game, a soldier is shot in the back as she dashes for cover, and the shield takes the hit though she's unaware of it and committed to another action. People just turn them on as they go in the field, and switch them back as they take off their body armour.

As Woodclaw said, previous editions had the tools to approximate this, but in 3rd.... let's see.

The core effect might be Protection, Limited to physical projectiles (I'd say Limited 2 since it covers almost all Ballistic, plus scattered projectile attacks with Descriptors such as Piercing or Blunt). It makes it harder for bullets and the like to hurt the person, that part is straightforward.

Now, the two complexities are going to be :
- it's ablative. A kinetic shield can only take so many good hits before the protection disappear, though it'll completely soak those hits.

- it's regenerative. The 'tactical feel' for the first game is short bursts of furious shooting, then diving back to solid cover so the shields will restore capacity after a few seconds of lull.


As I scratch my head (and am running my early Mass Effect material through a rewrite), I think a second Toughness score might represent shields well. This Toughness is only applied against projectiles, and each degree of success it suffers gives a -1 circumstance penalty against further damage. Once it's been reduced to zero it is Incapacitated and all attacks hit the character's own Toughness - but the shield's Toughness recover one point of penalty per round.

At this stage, I'm just thinking out loud.

[pawsplay]

Maybe Creation? That can create a barrier with its own Toughness.

[Ghostwise]

Maybe Creation? That can create a barrier with its own Toughness.

And Subtle 2... mmm... no, wait. The idea of using Toughness was to stick with damage resistance check mechanisms, but what I ended up writing doesn't actually work this way, so me introducing Toughness ends up being an unnecessary entity.

How about this :
Protection (foo) (Limited 2 to physical projectiles)
Limited 1 Flaw - each degree of failure on a Damage Resistance Check lowers Protection by one
One move action restores one Rank of Protection, a standard action restores two


It's a narrower scale, and the use of the actions represents bunkering down as the shield rebuilds, which approximates the "firefight becomes more static as you let your shield recharge and stay under cover".

The main problem I can see with this approach is that Protection will stack with other Toughness sources, whereas the shield via Create would have its own Toughness.
--> It removes to some extend the ability of low-powered weapons to still contribute to weakening shields - but on the other hand with the d20 variability, the low-powered weapon can roll well and land a success even on a high Toughness so that part likely lands on its feet.
--> It makes the characters tighter to build, as multiple sources of Toughness have to be handled carefully to obtain proper scores.

So this potential approach is standard and semi-simple - I say "semi" since it implies keeping track of the current Protection ranks, for instance by using a dice to display the number. But it would require much more playtesting to make sure it works than I have access to, so the numbers in the writeups are almost guaranteed to be a bit off.

[Ghostwise]

Omni-tools

Note : at this point all of our Mass Effect articles are about the *first game only*.

Omni-tools are a sort of micro-computer worn on the wrist. When used, it displays a distinctive interface - an orange hologram around the user's hand and forearm that behaves like a tactile screen. There's apparently a "silent mode" where the user just hold their outstretched hand close to the side of their face and use their hand as a phone, radio or walkie-talkie, with no holographic display.

In most cases, omni-tools are used as glorified smartphones to telephone, display and transfer data, receive news, store data, etc. The interface seems very powerful, though, as users can perform operations very quickly - locating and sending a file on their hard drive in seconds.

Expert users will make it clearer why it's called an omni-tool. Advanced functionalities include powerful computing, an array of wireless communication functions that can be used for electronic warfare, numerous pieces of software to interface with nearly every piece of high-tech equipment (often sensors) and even a 3D micro-printer. The printer can be fed a raw material called omni-gel to print out small items (usually replacement pieces to perform repairs), or a wonder material called medi-gel to treat wounds. These functionalities are used by engineers, but also by soldiers, explorers, policemen, doctors, first-in colonists, emergency medical technicians, etc.

An omni-tool with appropriate software counts as proper equipment for nearly all technical skills, allowing characters to use those without penalties for lack of gear. Some uses may require a bit of omni-gel (for instance for a lock-picking skill), and medical use will definitely consume medi-gel.

Basic omni-tool
In <i>DC Heroes</i>, a basic omni-tool used for communication will have these stats - [BODY 01, Data storage: 12, Radio communication: 13, Superspeed: 01, Limitation: Superspeed only for tasks involving processing information using the omni-tool].

In <i>DC Adventures</i> it is a Device with Radio Communication 3 (Rapid 2), Quickness 1 (Limited 2 to data management) and Feature 1 (data storage).

These stats represent the classic "user using at most 10% of the functionalities" phenomenon, and will work for most characters with an omni-tool. As usual, the communication score assumes the existence of relays, just like with cell phones.

Expert omni-tool
An omni-tool used by an expert will have different stats, to represent power user functionalities, specialised software, custom programming, etc. Possibilities include:

-- The microfac/3D printer can print out small objects using omni-gel - presumably up to the size of a fork or matchbox. In <i>DC Adventures</i> this is Create 1 (Permanent, Innate, Precise, Subtle 1) ; in <i>DC Heroes</i> this is Fabricate: 01 (Limited to doodads, permanent, no maximum number). In both cases it is necessary to have a software library that includes the item you wish produce - for instance a spare pieces library for a range of products by a given manufacturer - and some omni-gel. Expensive equipment presumably come with a pieces library bundled in, and some libraries (such as bypass circuitry for electronic locks, which consume a lot more omni-gel than most applications) are presumably illegal.

Most uses of the microfac are to perform technical skills, but the Powers above represent making small tools (wedge, scalpel, a specific kind of screwdriver, a plug...) to DIY your way out of the sort of situations a RPG character ends in.


-- A trained person with emergency medicine and battlefield medicine software, plus a good reservoir of medi-gel, can go beyond the usual first aid. Medi-gel is a wonder product that cleanses, disinfects, glues (to form temporary sutures), insulates, clots, etc. and the omni tool can quickly form small surgical instruments to help deliver it right. In <i>DC Heroes</i> this is APs of Regeneration, Linked to the Medicine Skill of the user, Useable on Others and with an Ammo score ; in <i>DC Adventures</i> this is Regeneration with a Check Required (Treatment) Flaw and the Source (Medi-gel) Flaw.

Note that this simulates super-tech battlefield medicine rather than an instant, ranged, collective healing spell like in the video game.


-- Electronic warfare experts will add Powers to represent their ability to disrupt enemy use of the Mass Effect, by sweeping through counter-frequencies or some such technobabble. Presumably this requires specialised combat hardware and software (which the best experts will want to customise), and a non-trivial quantity of Element Zero. Abilities used in the game include :

-- Shut down Mass Effect-using weapons through overheating (see below for weapons and heat). This is a Neutralise (DCH) or Nullify (DCA) effect, but limited since all weapons can dump the heat and come back online within three combat rounds. </li>
-- Partially collapsing Mass Effect kinetic shield, whether artificial or natural. This is a specialised attack power against MEK Shields, see below. </li>
-- Creating a Mass Effect disruption zone that prevents biotics from using their abilities. Since it doesn't affect technology, it may create a mentally painful backlash as the biotic person harness their power. Neutralise (DCH) or Nullify (DCA), affecting all biotic powers in the area of effect, but with effects that last at most three combat rounds. </li>
-- Overloading an active Mass Effect generator - technological or biological - to force it to release a burst of concussive force. This is usually combined with another Mass Effect manipulation/disruption attack. This Bomb (DCH) or Burst-Area Damage (DCA) is not normally a powerful attack -- 6 APs/Ranks would be common.

-- Electronic warfare can also be used to perform more traditional actions such as jamming or hacking. In <i>Mass Effect</i> jamming sensors and communication is always an enemy action, and only one character has the skills to hack enemy machines and have them go berserk for a while. In a more open RPG environment, ECM and ECCM would presumably play a more important role.

-- Various bits of software and small bits of hardware can be added to an mini-tool, based on what you could use on a laptop, a smartphone, a rails-equipped gun, a multitool, etc. Random examples include map/navigation packages, tweaking the holographic interface so it can also be used as a good flashlight, translation software with voice recognition, basic sensors such as thermometers or telemeters, remote control interfaces for vehicles and weapons, a targeting laser for a distant weapons system, etc.

[pawsplay]

How about this :
Protection (foo) (Limited 2 to physical projectiles)
Limited 1 Flaw - each degree of failure on a Damage Resistance Check lowers Protection by one
One move action restores one Rank of Protection, a standard action restores two

That's a lot softer than Fades, which is already a -1/rank modifier.

[Ghostwise]

Note - at this point our Mass Effect stuff is for the *first game only*.

Personal weaponry (part 1 - overview)
<p>
The guns are built around the Mass Effect - a tiny quantity of Element Zero
controls the mass of the projectile. Slivers are shaved off a metal block by an internal mechanism, dumped into a mass accelerator, and given a much higher mass as they fly down the barrel.
<p>
These guns seldom have to be reloaded, but the process generates a lot of heat and the shooter has to exercise trigger control - balls-out rapid fire will soon result in the gun shutting down to purge heat. Maintenance requires specialised training - the <i>Normandy</i> has a small-arms work bench with a computer terminal and specialised software, usually operated by Gunnery Chief Williams.
<p>
Weapons can accept upgrade modules, much like modern rail-on accessories, and
specialised ammunition blocks (giving special properties to the slivers fired by
the mass accelerator). This allows for adapting the weapon to a mission. Many upgrade modules can even be produced in the field using an omni-tool, provided that one has the proper libraries.
<p>
Weaponry and upgrades modules can be extremely expensive, in good part due to the Element Zero they use. Almost all military forces use baseline, mass-produced models with little E0 - but it's a big galaxy, and there's a market for higher-end models. These cost months, years or even decades of pay for a private, and law enforcement agencies usually restrict the higher-end armaments so they won't be outgunned by criminals. However, very expensive weapons are also markedly more powerful than basic weapons using very little Element Zero. Expensive weapons also come with targeting computers and target recognition software, which can do a great job at "editing out" factors such as darkness, particles in the air, recoil, bullet drop, variant gravity conditions, dense atmospheres, etc. - and their projectiles just fly faster and truer so you get closer to point-and-shoot.
<p>
Thanks to the Element Zero within, firearms are very light - and they are advanced
enough to be partially collapsible. When the safety is switched off, guns telescope by about 30% in the soldier's hands to adopt their combat size. This makes it trivial to carry multiple weapons, and Shepard and her crew use the distinctive Marines Special Forces (MARSOC) webbing where each trooper carries four guns - pistol high on the hip, precision rifle on the back's right side, assault rifle on the back's left side, shotgun on the small of the back. Even operatives who are not trained with most of these weapons will carry them all, since they mean little extra encumbrance and a gun is better than no gun.
<p>
Like most modern equipment, weapons are recyclable - by entering special
self-destruct sequences, they dissolve into omni-gel. Since the game's HUD features a heat gauge, a crosshair, etc. one assumes that guns can also be plugged in and feed information - presumably to the omni-tool of the user which relays it to the armour's visor or some other convenient display.


Personal weaponry (part 2 - stats)
<p>
The weapons used by Shepard's commandos are special-issue ordnance and much more powerful than run-of-the-mill Mass Effect-based firearms. These are about as much gun as you can build at this technology level, and are not commercially available to any customer.
<p>
For reference, we'll list basic Alliance firearms compared to guns reserved to Spectres. Most firearms will have stats similar to Alliance guns, Spectre guns are markedly above everything else, and various expensive firearms can be easily placed between the two.
<p>
Our assumption is these weapons are significantly more powerful than modern weapons - by about a factor of two. But the main advantage is that they do not use chemical propellants and conventional ammunition - in terms of personal encumbrance, holding power and autonomy, adaptability to extreme and alien conditions, and most of all logistics and supplies, this is a huge development for infantry. Between omni-tools and having sort-of-unlimited ammunition, small infantry units - company-level and below - are much more able to operate on their own.

IN DC HEROES
(snip)

IN DC ADVENTURES
<li> Kessler-I General Service Handgun -- Ranged Ballistic Damage 4 (Quirk - Overheat)

<li> HMWP Master Spectre Pistol -- Ranged Ballistic Damage 6 (Quirk - Overheat), Precise Attack 2 (Ranged - Concealment, Physics)

<li> Storm-I Crew Shotgun -- Shotgun Blast 7 (Quirk - Overheat)

<li> HMWSG Close Quarter Weapon -- Shotgun Blast 10 (Quirk - Overheat), Senses 5 (Extended Visual, Counters Visual Concealment 4 (lighting, visual clutter, fog/gasses/vapour)), Precise Attack 1 (Ranged - Physics)

<li> Lancer-I General Issue Assault Rifle -- Ranged Ballistic Multiattack Damage 6 (Quirk - Overheat), Senses 1 (Extended Visual).

<li> HMWA Master Spectre Assault Rifle -- Ranged Ballistic Multiattack Damage 9 (Quirk - Overheat), Senses 5 (Extended Visual, Counters Visual Concealment 4 (lighting, visual clutter, fog/gasses/vapour)), Precise Attack 1 (Ranged - Physics), Ranged Attack 1.

<li> Avenger-I Squad Marksman Rifle -- Ranged Ballistic Damage 5 (Quirk - Overheat), Senses 1 (Extended Visual), Ranged Attack 1, Improved Critical 1, Improved Range 1

<li> HMWSR Master Spectre Long Rifle -- Ranged Ballistic Damage 10 (Quirk - Overheat), Senses 5 (Extended Visual, Counters Visual Concealment 4 (lighting, visual clutter, fog/gasses/vapour)), Precise Attack 1 (Ranged - Physics), Ranged Attack 2, Improved critical 1
</ul></span>

<p>
"Overheat" is a four-point Drawback (the equivalent of Ammo: 10) in <i>DC Heroes</i>, and a Quirk in <i>DC Adventures</i>. It means that the weapon cannot be fired continuously for too long, and the shooter must exercise fire discipline. Trained soldiers will not generally encounter problems as they drill to fire in controlled bursts and monitor the heat output, but amateurs and people with temper issues can easily have their gun shut down to purge heat. This can also be an issue for professionals in specific situations, such as being rushed by hordes of radioactive zombies. Whether a gun is about to shut down from overheating is left at the GM's judgement. If a gun does overheat, it shuts down for three Phases/round then automatically comes back online.
<p>
In <i>DC Heroes</i>, Targeting is an Advantage that eliminates a CS of penalty to ranged attacks caused by poor conditions (lighting, Darkness, Fog, visual clutter and concealment, unusual gravity, atmospheric density and conditions (such as rain and wind), range, etc.). Targeting 2 removes 2 such CSes of OV increase when taking a shot.
<p>
In <i>DC Adventures</i>, Precise Attack (Physics) works like other Precise Attack Advantages. It compensates for attack penalties caused by physical conditions - such as a dense atmosphere, a gravity not close or equal to 1, and the like. This is chiefly useful to fight in space and on alien worlds, and thus rare outside of science-fiction stories.


Personal weaponry (part 3 - upgrades)
<p>
Generally speaking, the weapons and ammunition modifications in the first <i>Mass Effect</i> game do not fit very well with either DCA or DCH - the effects are too minor and specific. Plus, the concept of specialty ammunition is difficult to reconcile with tiny slivers of metal granted high speed and mass, and pen-and-paper RPGs can just make up new guns rather than apply modifications to a set list of weapons.
<p>
However, some players may be willing to put up with the extra complexity and marginal effects for a bit of extra flavour -- or some GMs may want mods with more dramatic effects than they do in the game.
<p>
Here are some possible approaches in DCA and DCH. Generally, these would have low Ranks/APs - perhaps a third of the gun's main Power - and significantly slow the game's pace, since this is a lot of things to resolve for a single shot.

SPECIALISED AMMUNITION IN DC HEROES
(snip)

SPECIALISED AMMUNITION IN DC ADVENTURES
<li> Armour-Piercing/Tungsten ammunition. Doesn't translate as such as even the largest (+25%) bonus is too small, but you may wish to introduce actual armor-piercing (as opposed to synthetics-defeating) ammunition. See Weapons locker - Modern firearms v2 (part 5) on writeups.org.

<li> Anti-Personnel/Shredder round. Doesn't translate either, and more conventional anti-personnel ammunition would make little sense - all military forces are armoured.

<li> Incendiary/Inferno rounds. Linked with a bit of Ranged Fire Damage, plus an Affliction (Dazed/Stunned, Limited Degree, resisted by Dodge and later by Toughness, as the target has to put out the fire). Note that kinetic shields work against these rounds.

<li> Cryo/Snowblind rounds. Linked with a bit of Ranged Cold Damage and either the same Affliction as for incendiaries, or Dazzle. Note that the Ranged Cold Damage is not blocked by kinetic shields.

<li> Explosive rounds. Will confer a Burst Area 1 to all but one Damage Rank of the round, but the weapon will quickly overheat.

<li> Chemical/Polonium rounds. Linked with some Ranged Poison Damage with a secondary Effect

<li> Hammerhead/Sledgehammer rounds. Linked with some Ranged Poison Damage with a secondary Effect, plus an Affliction (Dazed/Prone, Limited Degree, resisted by Dodge). The Affliction will have Ranks in the vicinity of the weapon's Damage Rank.

<li> Phasic/Proton rounds. Two fewer Ranks of Damage than with normal ammo, but changes the Descriptor to Energy - which means ignoring kinetic shields.

<li> Radioactive rounds. Linked with a bit of Nullify (Biotics).


WEAPONS UPGRADES
These are almost all fiddly adjustments to heat dispersion and recoil compensation - notions that do not work in either DCH or DCA.
<p>
Combat sensors work fine, however, and can be considerably more detailed than in the video game. Element Zero sensors (indicating weapons), life detectors, movement detectors, kinetic shield detectors, radar, lidar, etc. can all be brought into play (in DCA through various Senses effects, in DCH through various Detects, Life Sense, Radar sense, etc.). Conversely, enemies with ECM such as geth hoppers can go for various subtle (Obscure in DCH, Concealment in DCA) and forceful (Neutralise/Nullify) attempts at denying sensors to the enemy.
<p>
Optical systems (such as night vision) are also curiously absent from <i>Mass Effect</i>. See our Modern Firearms part 5 article for modern systems that should logically exist in the <i>Mass Effect</i> universe.

[Ghostwise]

How about this :
Protection (foo) (Limited 2 to physical projectiles)
Limited 1 Flaw - each degree of failure on a Damage Resistance Check lowers Protection by one
One move action restores one Rank of Protection, a standard action restores two

That's a lot softer than Fades, which is already a -1/rank modifier.

I dunno. Fade works for a set number of time, whereas this mechanism could result in your shield being ablated out much more quickly (perhaps in one shot) if you get hit hard enough. Fade is better in some circumstances, this mechanic is better in others.

On the other hand, the shields recover much faster than something with the Fade Flaw.

On the gripping hand, having your Protection chewed away by enemy fire and forcing you to bunker down to recover is certainly a significant Flaw, and we can't get lower than -1 unless we use a Removable-type pricing scheme.

[Ghostwise]

A beta of the entire Mass Effect article is online - http://writeups.org/fiche.php?id=5322 - since reviewing it without a layout was getting painful.

The parts that involve kinetic shields in DCA have yet to be filled out as we hammer something out, as the biotics part is being designed.

[Ghostwise]

Added DCA stats for the Mako (sans kinetic shields for now), currently working on biotics.

--------------

Mako M35 (52 points vehicle) — Huge, Strength 10, Toughness 12, Defense 10, Senses 7 (Extended Visual, Radius Ranged Detect (Dense objects, energy, movement), Distance sense), Communication (Radio, Subtle) 3, Speed 5, Leaping 2, Movement 2 (Safe fall, Sure-footed), Immunity 10 (Life support)
Coax machinegun (29 points vehicular weapon) — Ranged Ballistic damage 11 w/8 Ranks having Burst Area 1 ; Quirk 1 (Overheat)
155mm mass driver cannon (32 points vehicular weapon) — Ranged Ballistic Damage 14 Linked w/Ranged Burst Area 2 Explosive Damage 9 ; Limited 1 (Can only fire every other round)

[Ghostwise]

First stab at the Biotic Lift, from thearticle :

------------------------------------

Biotic Lift is an Affliction with the Extras Ranged and Extra Condition x2, the Flaw Limited Degree, and Resisted by Dodge.

The Conditions for one degree of success are hindered, vulnerable, and illuminated (the character can be targeted without Concealment penalties).

The Conditions for two degrees for success are immobilised, defenceless and lifted (each degree of success is the equivalent one Rank of Move Object, though it can only be used to lift the person straight in the air).

[Ghostwise]

Second stab, which takes into account how easy it is to propel away a Lifted person and rounds up and align the two proposed Conditions :

---------------------

Biotic Lift is an Affliction with the Extras Ranged and Extra Condition x2, the Flaw Limited Degree, and Resisted by Dodge.

The Conditions for one degree of success are hindered, vulnerable, and illuminated (the character can be targeted without Concealment penalties, and their mass is treated as being one Rank lower).

The Conditions for two degrees for success are immobilised, defenceless and lifted (each degree of success lowers the mass of the target by one Rank whilst the effect is active, the target can be targeted without Concealment penalties, and the target is lifted upward as per the effects of one Rank of Move Object).

---------------------

For kinetic shields, I am increasingly of the mind to go for the approach where :
- the shield has a set Toughness (namely 2 for a human-sized shield)
- when hit by the sort of damage it stops, the shield will soak a number of Degrees of Success equal to its Ranks
- the shield regenerates one Rank per round
- if the shield is overwhelmed the Effect that took it down hits the character, but the Ranks of the Effect are diminished by as many Degrees of Success it soaked before collapsing.

The cons are that it's not well system-integrated (though it's simple and doesn't bring in any new concept), and that it implies keeping track of the current Ranks of shield that are active. The pro is that it's easy to set at a level that will work correctly, and will not result in something horribly broken due to lack of playtest since their behaviour is easily statistically predictable.

Thoughts ?

[pawsplay]

The effect being reduced by the degrees of success seems the funkiest. Just leaving off that part would make it more congruent with Impervious, even though it acts more like a Create effect.

[Ghostwise]

The effect being reduced by the degrees of success seems the funkiest. Just leaving off that part would make it more congruent with Impervious, even though it acts more like a Create effect.

Yeah, now that I see it again you're right. It does simulate that when your kinetic shield collapses it's a whole new ball game (as you get hit hard despite the best efforts of your now-collapsed shield) but this little bit of flourish is probably not worth the funk.

OTOH a Toughness of 2 might be a bit low, especially since it's better not to have kinetic shields have a gazillion Ranks. Let's try with a Toughness of 4 and see how it behaves ; we'll open fire with a XXth century light pistol (damage 3), a Lancer-I assault rifle (damage 6, let's ignore the Multiattack since it's usually used by mooks), and a geth light rocket launcher (damage 11, I suppose).

Toughness dice rolls ("1D" means one degree of failure, "2D" two degrees, etc.) with Toughness 4:
Vs. Light pistol: 14+ for 0D, 9+ for 1D, 4+ for 2D
Vs. Lancer-I: 17+ for 0D, 12+ for 1D, 7+ for 2D, 2+ for 3D
Vs. rocket: 17+ for 1D, 12+ for 2D, 7+ for 3D, 2+ for 4D

It's not unreasonable, but as usual the dice plays a more important role than the weapon with the three-points difference between a light pistol and a future assault rifle having a weak impact in the distribution.

But generally, against a Toughness 4 small arms are going to get 1 degree of success (occasionally two) and big weapons two degrees (occasionally three). Skilled attackers will probably worsen these estimates by one degree through Power Attack (presumably representing rapid fire and quick reloads to saturate the kinetic shield).

This means that recovering one point is a fairly big deal, and making it cost a Standard Action to represent bunkering down to recover kinetic shield capacity is more sensible than automatic per-round recovery. This means that a person with a shield facing light pistols can last for a very long while if they regularly spend time behind cover, whereas Lancer-I fire will strip two points in one shot often enough that turtling becomes a problem.

Mmm, this does suggest a fairly small - and thus easily-managed - scale for kinetic shields. Maybe 1 to 3 for human-sized combatants, with 3 being very high-end armour with badass shields. One gives you decent protection against popguns but you'll need to be careful, two is the same against rifles, three will save your bacon against even a big bad hit and will soak rifle fire for a good two or three rounds if there's only one guy hitting you.

Might work.

[Ghostwise]

More beta material from the article (which is getting long - I'll add an index at the beginning since splitting it wouldn't really help). The article also describes what this stuff does in plain English, for non-ME1-gamers.


Biotic Warp
A Biotic Warp is a Power that includes two Linked Effects - Damage (with a Molecular Disruption Descriptor) and Weaken (with the same Descriptor, attacking Toughness, and the Affect Objects Extra). These Effects both have the Burst Area Extra, and a Limited 1 Flaw (once a Biotic Warp field is interrupted, the character must spend two Standard Actions and two Move Actions to rebuild enough of a charge to reuse their Biotic Warp Power).



Biotic Stasis
Biotic Stasis is an Affliction resisted by Will. It has the Concentration and Extra Condition Extras, and the Instant Recovery Flaw. Biotic Stasis further has an unusual Limited 1 Flaw -- each degree of failure also grants an increasing degree of protection to the target. The effects of Biotic Stasis per degree of Will resistance check failure are :

One degree - the target is hindered and dazed, but all their defenses are increased by three while the Affliction lasts
Two degrees - the target is immobile and attack-disabled, but all their defenses are increased by six while the Affliction lasts
Three degrees - the target is paralysed and unaware, but all their defenses are set at 12 while the Affliction lasts

[Ghostwise]

Biotic singularity is handlable with very little hassle :

A Singularity is a Move Object with a Limited 1 Flaw (only toward a specific point with Range) and a Burst Area Extra.

It is Linked with an Affliction (resisted by Fortitude) with Limited Degree ; one degree of failures leaves targets hindered, and two leave them prone. The Ranks in Affliction are usually higher than in Move Object.