VR Dragon wrote:Yes, it can be abused but that is one part of being a GM is. Not Allowing things to become so. Also as to the powers listed and what the description says under psionic powers in the race creation rules in PW. All the psionic powers chosen must fit a pattern like all telepathic in nature or such. No just picking and choosing what makes you extra beefy. The examples you gave I will go into . . . . . . . .
Spread #1 - the Mind-Control / Mentalist theme
Supers: Bio-Manipulation, Hypnotic Suggestion
Minors: Telepathy, Mind Block, Exorcism, Alter Aura, See Aura, See the Invisible, Sense Evil, Sense Magic, Sixth Sense
Spread #2 - the Electro-Physical / Machinist spread
Supers: Electrokinesis, Telemechanics
Minors: Machine Ghost, Telekinesis, Object Read, Psychic Purficiation, Impervious to Poisons, Sixth Sense, Telepathy, Mind Block, Sense Magic
Both can give the CK extreme advantages / take away from many scenarios in which the "Classic" CK would have had to resort to ingenuity, or - gasp - teamwork! I think something that has been lost in the discussion iss the fact the CK's
shouldn't be able to do it all - they should need others. After all, if they didn't need anyone else . . . . . . . .
Also, the information gleaned from some powers can be very telling - If all the CK has to do is activate a power to tell that someone is possessed instead of being cautious and reading the unusual actions of one of their companions, it can take away from the story. Same if they can then just force it out with another power. Being able to identify Supernatural Evil beings automatically, without cost, is a powerful ability, being able to then track them means they become much more efficient in their jobs - perhaps to efficient, from a story perspective. And, as far as I am aware, See Invisible sees all forms of invisibility, not just Invisibility: Simple, so yes, it is that powerful.
As far as taking away the threat of Psionics being used against them I do not see the full logic to this. Okay so you cannot use telepathy on them as well but they can still fail rolls, you cannot mentally possess other them so easy either, you may not be able to bio-manipulate them easy too, theses are minor issues at best as all other aspects of psionics will effect them normally since not much else requires a save vs psionics.
The difference is now they save much more often - 15-25% more often. And while not explicitly stated, Psionics has alway been something they would have to contend with - giving them this that any psychic nemesis is now severely handicapped
If you cannot mind control them them use psi-swords, super TK boulders into them, lock them in a TK Force field and run like hell (Only you have a 5 second head start at the least), Also it was not stated that psionics was a weakness and a cosmo knight could always roll low stats. As always a Cosmo Knight really only had only magic as their real weakness.
So, you would have a psychic enemy STOP being a Psychic and try to PHYSICALLY BEST the CK? No Psi-Sword is going to match their cosmic weapon and Supernatural strength, TKing boulders into them is a joke - even assuming you hit, with a 1,000 lbs rock - you do 1D4x10 . . . . . . at the cost of 100 ISP? Something they will healing within a minute, and they could easily vaporize said stone with a couple blasts - rending you, once again, weaponless and now out a hundred ISP. And run away? how fast do you move? Cause that knight flies at MACH 1 per level - I don't think you're going to be able to run away from him.
Oh, and now that youve let them have Psychic powers, they can use said powers to find you, so good luck trying to hide.
Leave the Psychic Villian a chance to actually BE a Psychic Villian
Besides if you want a villian to excape I would try something more clever then I outrun them. Try 2 or more ships suddenly flying away in different directions. A lone cosmo knight can only catch one the rest get away.
So you prefer to have it as an arbitrary "He get's away, no matter what you do"? That's what you seem to be presenting here - no matter which ship the CK goes after, it will be the wrong one. I'd rather have it as a reason the Cosmo-Knight should need to work with others - because they can't do it all alone.
Cosmo Knights are DESIGNED to fight and destory space ships and space level threats that's why a they get so much power and are so powerful. They are walking Star Fighters. The only reason they get so much PPE is to power their Cosmic Energy Blasts which can only be do so while in space. A Cosmo Knight should not have just enough power to take out a small fighter then say " Oh damn I am out of power now, So I must rest hours till I can rejoin the fight." They can handle multiple threats. True as you say they won't be burning MDC often and they should be. But if they are ever in an intense need and are tapped they are given an option for some extra juice even if it kills them.
Umm, go through the numbers again, I said a First-level CK - one right out of the fires of the forge itself, can destroy at least 2 fighters before being "dry" - or one military shuttle (say goodbye to everything it was carrying that can't fly on it's own power). By level 3 - a CK that has seen some action - he can fraking take out a Frigate single-handedly - or a whole squadron of fighters - So, yeah, they have plenty of power that they shouldn't be burning into their MDC that often. All I'm saying is that their should be some game-mechanical reason that they should consider their options and think before they blow through all of their PPE
The better drawback is losing 50-100 MDC/PPE. If you payed for it in this manor and not with simple credits then sorry but no one has a right to so easily take it away from you.Tell that to any caster or creates a magic weapon (I don't recall the specific spell) - it also costs permanent PPE, and they can lose it just as easily. As with Golems, etc . . Villians have enough weapons and things at there disposel I don't see the need to add this to the list. Also as the Cosmic Forge I would not allow some weapon I give to my defenders to be so easily used against those I created them to protect. Bad guys need a super weapon give them a rune sword or whatever.
Well, first you say it's the Knights that make the weapon, now you're saying it's the Forge that does? The Description in the book states that they can be lost or stolen, and that knights often fall trying to get them back - ignoring this is taking away from the original concept, and taking away a vulnerability of the Weapon-wielding knight. Don't want to lose your cosmic weapon? then don't make one.
Yes, you give up PPE/MDC for it but a force field works like a force field from my view . . . . . . .
Then none of the magic spells or Psychic powers are considered force-fields? The only fields that work like that are tech ones - something that I think we can both agree is not the source of the CK's Force-Field. Again, this is removing a weakness of the power for no legitimate reason - use it appropriately, or you could, indeed, waste it.
There is a cost to this burning for PPE. They lose the MDC. To much burning and someone with a rail gun will take them out in lucky shot. Also to increase the recovery time doesn't make much sense as it will lead to more players not wanting to risk hurting themselves to help others.
In looking back over such, specifically seeing the numbers again, I can drop the issue of a slower healing for "burn" damage, though, in the alternative, I would like to have it rules that when you burn MDC for PPE, it can ONLY be used for your Cosmo-Knight abilities, and not shared with anyone else (to prevent PPE-Battery-ness from occurring)
Okay lets look at this problem that seems to be sticking in so many craws. Communicating in space. You need a radio and well CKs get radio basic as a skill. Okay, fine. But how reliable is a radio?
As reliable as one else's radio - I don't see this as a bad thing.
How common are radio singles scrambled, jammed , etc. Well a Cosmo Knight could wear one but their armor wouldn't protect it and one blast or explosion would destroy it, or flying someplace too hot or cold (Being in direct sunlight in space can be 320+ degrees F or -230 or more cold) would destroy most unshielded simple radios. So you have a flee of small fighters rail gun using fighters attacking a cosmo knight.
Quick jam his radio so he cannot call for help or warn someone!
Shoot him with a missile to knock out his Radio!
Well, YOU are making the determination that the radio couldn't go under the armor with yur statement above - I suggest it can, given the artwork, the fact that they all have the skill with it, and no description contrary to the fact - all of which (to me) point to the fact that they can and do wear such devices underneath their armor and use them to communicate. And as such, they would be protected by said armor
Radio Signals take along time to travel great distances, and are limited in ranges. The Proposed range of 250 thousand miles is long on a planet but in space would just reach the moon from earth orbit. This range also only works for non Cosmo Knights as a CK cannot reach normal minds beyond that distance.
Well, first off, I would point out that your range on that power is greater than the sensor ranges on most ships - far, far too excessive in my opinion. Especially when you consider that the CK can't engage anything beyond 10 miles away to begin with - so the excuse of
needing it to accept surrender is absurd. Given the level of tech, an CK can have an ear piece the size of a blue-tooth head set that can communicate to any radio within 20 miles (don't believe me, look at a
Video Communicator (RUE, page 263),
Portable Computer (RUE, page 262) and
Holographic Personal Computer (PW, page 143) - these are examples of the small size and level of tech in RIFTS, and then a comparison to the more-advanced level of tech available in PW). They have the skill, the equipment is easy to get, so let them use it - it makes no sense to deny it to them, and then give them something 50,000 times better.
And, as for the speed issue - 186,000 miles per second - little discernible lag, even at your ranges.
A limited form of telepathy that worked like a radio worked better to solve the problems. Telepathy is not affected by language barriers. No need to be contrived or causing fuss with picky GMs over "Can I wear a radio while in my Cosmic Armor?". Also for sanity sake just assume the clothing is stored the same place the armor came from or the clothing turns into the armor and would appear shredded if the armor was badly damaged.
So, to reiterate, you're giving them this huge, grand power to solve a problem that - at worst - could have been solved by just saying they can wear a radio under their armor? And now you're saying that the armor either trades places with, or turns into, the Cosmic Armor, instead of just having the Cosmic Armor go over said clothing? I think you're going way too far here - make it simply, and keep true to the original concept.
Radio under armor = VERY close to original concept.
Granted super-radio-telepathy power = not close to original concept.
Also, as his power is the justification for making them a master-rated Psychic, this addition includes that benefit as well, which is uncalled for and further takes the CK away from it's original concept.
Space is Dark and full of stars. Night vision amplifies ambient light so faint objects can be seen. Sure there are stars and a sun out there but space is dark for a reason. So their eyes are just good at working in low light situations. Least I figured it so.
I don't see it as that dark - I mean, the vast majority of the time you will be within a star-system - plenty of light all around. Remember that that bright, shining heavenly body we call the Moon is just reflecting the sunlight that hits it - and that all the planets and moons do like wise, and that all the light from the stars doesn't have to pass through an atmosphere for you to see it in space . . . . . I am confident that there is enough light to not need night-vision to see.
So you think someone charged with protecting the universe to have no idea about the laws of the different star spanning they will be dealing with? Sorry it is basic training for every one with some form of police powers to know the laws they are working with. Why is this even a problem? While the cosmic forge may not keep tabs on the laws of the various worlds Galactic law applies to the laws layed down and followed by the star spanning powers that the Cosmo Knights deal with in their area of the three galaxies.There aren't many empires in the Three Galaxies and most have stand commonalities, IT does not cover local planetary laws. A cosmo knight will not arrive on some small back water tribe level planet and know that sneezing at the chief's daughter counts as a death threat and can only be solved by marrying her.
So long as it is just a general knowledge, I am fine with it. obeying the local laws is mentioned within the code itself, and since they do get so few skills, I can accept that as a freebie.
This is the problem with Power-Creep. to be honest, they can STILL do what they need to, without the improvements. Clarifications, in my opinion, are what is most needed.
Power creep happens and if Kevin put it in the books I figure he knows what he is doing for the most part. I accept power creep as standard evolutionary progress. Yes and CK and do what they do without the stuff I proposed but the extra stuff allows them to do it just as before but with new twits that add to the game not destroy it. Do what you feel is best for your game.
I feel that much of your proposed "extra stuff" does, in fact, take away from the inherent role-playing aspects of the CK, making them more capable than they should be.