Power Resistance?

[Adminenkainen]

I was thinking of this late last night. That Other Game has a mechanic known as magic resistance to make monsters more challenging for high-level clerics and magic-users to fight. There is precedent for this in H&H already too.

But what about making mobsters more challenging for high-level superheroes? Should power resistance be a thing? Maybe something hi-tech body armor can bestow, or some alien races will have naturally?

[order99]

Well, Magic Resistance is usually reserved in That Original Game for really powerful creatures from Beyond...Demons, Angels, Slaad etc. Most other powerful creatures are either innately Resistant (AKA "Golems are immune to all Spells except foe X,Y,Z and here's what those do") and other, lesser Foes having none whatsoever.

Magic nearly always has a common theoretical source, whereas Powers have as many Origins as there as there are-well, Origins...so personally i'd recommend Power Resistance as a property of strange, reality-bending Super Science Trophies,  Horrors from Beyond the Stars, and Artifacts. Anything that 'Defies the Laws of Physics as We Know It' would be a decent candidate for Power Resistance-"Behold! The Madness Zone! Your Abilities and Technology will be as erratic as its ever-shifting terrain! Beware..." (Power Resistance 30%, Magic Resistance 20%)....

  It occurs to me though that an an existing mechanic is already in place for Player Heroes-the Save mechanic. PC's already have a Level-dependent Save vs Science, Poison to resist some (not all) Powers, Save vs Magic, Save vs Missles to show increased evasive techniques and Save vs Plot for Lucky Breaks. It would be easy enough to use the existing mechanic to make Resistant Mobsters and/or Trophies on a case-by-case basis:

  "The non-Euclidian field around the Flesh from Beyond allows the abomination a Save vs Science and Poison of 6+ and a Save vs Magic of 7+, even from effects that normally do not allow a Save-but can be countered by Area Attacks".

  "The Mad Doctor's latest discovery-a combination of Unobtanium mesh with Youcanthaveitum grounding cables-have given him an AC of 3, Save vs Science and Poison of 8+, even against effects that normally bypass Saves (Impervious). If a clever PC thinks to sever the cables connecting the lunatic to the wall-sized power supply, AC falls to 5 and the Saves lose their Impervious Quality-and the Backup Battery will fail within 1D6 Combat Turns, leaving the Madman with AC 6 and no Saves at all.."

 There's something I like about tweaking the Save system on a case-by-case basis that just begs for customization-on the other tentacle there's something to be said about the brevity of "Powers Resistance-45%". But yeah, I think having the option to beef up terrain, Mobsters or Trophies with said mechanic is another tool in the Editor's arsenal and can therefore only be a Good Thing...