Statting Up Worm Characters

[Hick Jr]

So, any ideas vis-a-vis Shatterbird? I think Ritual is the only way to model her macrohyalokinesis.

(I am a master of latin roots.)

That, or you can hack the version of Macrohydrokinesis you have into something workable.

[Sanctaphrax]

I'm torn between Incite Effect + Wings and Telekinesis + Strength for modelling Shatterbird's main tricks. The city-wide attack will probably be a custom -2 upgrade for Natural Weaponry or Incite Effect...it's very powerful, but it's kind of crude and not terribly useful in most situations so the cost doesn't have to be huge.

Ritual might be better though, now that you mention it.

[Hick Jr]

Something like this?

Incite Effect (Silicakinesis, with Discipline) (At Range) [-2]
Telekinesis (Enhanced, Defensive, Area, Selective, Potent, Self Propelling, Mythic Strength) [-14]
Limitation [+?, I have no idea how to price that but it's probably at least Severe] that your telekinesis only works on silicates and silicon based material (glass, sand, etc.)


Wow. That version is playable in a Submerged game if that's actually a Severe Limitation.

EDIT: Actually, a stunt might be in order.

Razorstorm (Discipline): A bunch of supersonic glass shards isn't fun for people who aren't wearing armor. Against unarmored targets, your Telekinetic attacks using glass deal +2 stress.

Yes, that puts her at Weapon:12 but Shatterbird is noted several times, in setting, to be unwholesomely powerful. Her and the Siberian are the Nine's big guns.

[Sanctaphrax]

I was thinking Incite Effect or Telekinesis, not both.

That's not a severe Limitation. Honestly I'm not even sure it's moderate. Shatterbird's reliance on silicon never really prevents her from flying or attacking or defending herself, since there's usually glass or at least sand around and she wears a glass costume.

I think Mythic Strength is too much. Shatterbird's attacks are probably no more than weapon 6 given how much trouble she had hurting Hookwolf and given that she fails to kill any Undersiders or Travellers when they fight her.

Her main strengths are versatility and area-of-effect, plus Cauldron thinks she might be able to damage the crystal-bodied Endbringers. But she's not really stronger than, say, Crawler.

[Hick Jr]

Hmm. I just thought Cauldron was interested in her because her power, despite being a fluke, was almost ridiculously versatile and destructive. I never considered her being able to directly damage an Endbringer. The Siberian would probably rip one of them to shreds until she hit the point where their bodies start to break universal laws on how matter works.

Well, that's most of the more interesting members of the Nine done. I'd be interested in a writeup of Screamer and Winter.

EDIT: Actually, it just occurred to me that we might actually need writeups of a lot of members of the Nine for the Worm game that's being put together. I'm assuming the characters would have at least some part in the events of the Sting arc, and that involves basically every member of the Nine, past and present. I'd be willing to at least try Breed, Murder Rat, and Crimson.

[Sanctaphrax]

I dunno about Screamer and Winter. Their powers aren't too tricky, but they're bit characters that we know little about. Maybe I'll do them, maybe not.

I don't know whether we'll need Nine stats in the PbP. We don't even have a time period for play, after all.

[finnmckool]

I think the meanest, sneakiest and easiest way to do Siberian is to make an actual thing that reflects what her power DOES, not it's effect. Siberian isn't super strong or super tough

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outside of being a construct so therefore unkillable

. Siberian, instead, if I understand her power correctly, just allows it to cheat with physics (though I'm not clear enough in getting whether it's gravity, inertia, or whatever to draw this up entirely). But the mechanical gist of it, to my thinking, is that Siberian essentially gets to add or subtract shifts to physical attacks. Add that to being

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a construct

and therefore immune to lots of mental or stranger type attacks and Siberian APPEARS immune to everything and super strong and blah blah.  So maybe the key is to make a power that allows Siberian to unfairly apply shifts however she feels. Is it mechanically unfair? Yes. But that's kinda the overall point. Some people get exceedingly unfair powers.

[Sanctaphrax]

I don't follow.

How is "applying shifts" different from getting bonuses to your dice rolls?

[Ursine Enigma]

For Siberian, Physical Immunity without a catch would be unfair enough;  add
claws & All Equal before God, a couple of Speed & Strength powers & your players will weep sweet candy tears.

[narphoenix]

For Siberian, Physical Immunity without a catch would be unfair enough;  add
claws & All Equal before God, a couple of Speed & Strength powers & your players will weep sweet candy tears.

PI has a Catch.

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William Manton

[Taran]

I might just give a power that lets her ignore "X" shift borders.  I mean, she walks through/over pretty much anything.  Just say that she can go through any 8 shift zone border with no problems.  Assume there might collateral damage based on how she to go through it (whether she's walking though walls or jumping over a wall).  Her ability to do that kind of thing really has nothing to do with Strength anyways.

[Hick Jr]

I'm with Sanctaphrax on this, actually. Give her a version of All Creatures are Equal Before God that's always on, Physical Immunity with a Catch of attacks on WM, Potent Natural Weaponry and Mythic Strength. Max out her Fists, Endurance, and Might. Done. You've created a character who can lift/break anything in the game without even rolling most of the time, is completely invulnerable, and hits so hard, freight train accidents think their mother has finally come home. Weapon:10 isn't as big a deal in the Wormverse as it is in the Dresdenverse, but then it hits you that it's Weapon:10 and nothing getting hit by it gets any Toughness. I don't know how to model her ability to extend her invulnerability. We're probably going to have to bite the bullet and write a Power-granting-Power at some point.


Honestly? I don't even know that I would use that writeup against my players. I can think of one or two ways for the characters in the Worm PbP up there to beat it as they're currently written, but it's still a nigh-impossible fight.

Which is true to the real Siberian, actually.

[PirateJack]

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There's a reason she was the only cape able to hurt Alexandria before Taylor came along. Hell, they even tested containment foam on her before anyone else; just because they didn't have a way of hurting her.

[Hick Jr]

Okay, given the recent Interlude, the Simurgh and possibly a few of the other Endbringers might deserve some stuff beyond Thaumaturgy. Spoiler thing below.

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They all deserve Pack Instincts, possibly with upgrades, Simurgh has the ability to cause hallucinations, and possibly a Trouble referencing the fact that she can't perceive the present in any way.

[finnmckool]

You give the character the option of applying them however they like, any time they like to whatever's relevant (though it seems to only work on the physical based things). You're also TAKING AWAY shifts from your opponent as you wish. You're manipulating the actual game rules or "physical universe," recreate the actual power rather than the effect of added strength, speed, yadda yadda yadda. In short, come up with a base package and just allow her to add or subtract from her or whoever's touching her. That way it's an elegant effect without having to haggle over every stat.