[UA] POLL: Power Level

[Chad Underkoffler]

> Date: Tue, 21 Nov 2000 15:53:51 -0700
> From: Stuart Anderson <stuartanderson at qwest.net>
>
> Chad Underkoffler wrote:
> > Hidey-ho.
> > Another mindless poll from me.
>
> I'm curious about the results from your last mindless poll.
> The 'power level' discussion in general intrigues me. 
> Comments I get on my gaming style are that folks like the 
> stripped down feel and the brisk pace of my games, but they'd
> never call me to run a superhero game. Well that's cool. I'm 
> beyond the all things to all people thing. But it leaves a 
> little thread trailing through the back of my mind that wants
> to know what other folks consider when establishing an 
> appropriate power level for their games. The responses to 
> your poll seemed to hug the lower end of the power
> spectrum, where I'm at. I was hoping to see comments from
> the full metal jacket end. I'm sure people have experimentally
> pumped up the point levels and opened some industrial-sized 
> drums of whup-ass. What was that like? Any pitfalls or 
> considerations?
> --Stu, just sharing his mindless pole.

First off, keep that mindless pole of yours away from me,
Spanky.

Secondly, I've posted here to the List a number of times about
my pulp-influenced UA campaign (try searching on "Little
Bohemia"). I have to say that unmodified, it's tough for UA to
handle high-powered gaming at the point level you're given.
(Which is, as Greg has noted, a design feature, not a bug.)

The most annoying thing is that any time you roll a non-Obsessed
skill, you're probably going to fail. As my players and I are
mostly coming from GURPS, where you have an even or better
chance of succeeding on average, it was quite a wrench.

The second most annoying thing is a realted topic, focusing on
Notice rolls: that the players have to be
Sherlock-frickin'-Holmes to ever detect anything happening. 

Now, these two problems can be obviated greatly by just not
requiring people to roll for unstressed usage if they have a
skill of 15+%, like it recommends in the book. Still, it's
annoying.

I tried to incoproate a mook/named GMC rule a la Feng Shui:
didn't work well enough-- the setting is too at odds for that
situation. Can't fit a square peg in a roudn hole.

Ultimately, all the bolt-ons we did to the UA system kinda
clunked along. The next time I run UA, I'm gonna:

1. Give the players double-stat points for skills.

2. Combat becomes "opposed rolls" (Struggle straight up, or
Firearms vs. Dodge, for example)

3. Things to be Noticed gain a Notice Target number; if the
Notice Target < PC's Notice roll, they catch it (passive use).
Active use is still a roll.

4. Formula Spells are going bye-bye; all magick is random
magick. (That would probably minimize Tilts, but I'm not sure.
Must ponder.)

5. I may allow a simple "ghost shirt" sort of anti-bullet
amulet, a la Wu Zhanhan's in HH; only it has to be recharged
somehow each morning or lose effectiveness. And said ghost shirt
amulet would only work on mundane bullets, not those ritually
prepared "With Your Name On It."




=====
Chad Underkoffler [chadu at yahoo.com]
http://www.geocities.com/chadu/index.html
"Hold your breath. Make a wish. Count to three."
  -- Willy Wonka

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