Mega-Strength
Mega-Strength is perhaps the best known of the Mega-Attributes.
It's certainly the least subtle. Novas with Mega-Strength usually have enormous
muscles and a love of showing off what they can do with them. In nova circles it's commonplace to see them tossing cars around, smashing
through buildings, picking up ships and crushing guns into paperweights.
In fact, many of the feats that novas with Mega-Strength
perform defy the laws of science. For example, Mega-Strong novas have been
observed picking up ships without having them break — even though the object's
sheer weight should cause it to fall apart (not to mention the difficulty of
getting a good grip on something that big). Experts on quantum powers speculate
that a Mega-Strong nova unconsciously emits quantum energies to help keep the
object together while he lifts it, but this
hypothesis has not been proven conclusively.
Unlike other Mega-Attributes, Mega-Strength provides
no extra dice or reductions to difficulties; when making Strength rolls,
the character still rolls her base, unenhanced
Strength, Brawl or Might skill total. Thus, a super-strong combatant still
rolls her normal Strength + Brawl skill total to hit an opponent. However, each
level of Mega-Strength provides a number of extra automatic successes that add
to many Strength or Might rolls: for example, to
inflict damage with a punch or smash through a vault door. Moreover, each dot
of Mega-Strength provides an automatic minimum amount of weight the nova can
lift: for example, a nova with Mega-Strength 1 can lift an object of 1000 kg
(about one ton) without the necessity of a roll at all!
When Mega-Strength is used to lift something heavy,
consult the table below to determine the nova's base lifting ability (such as
1000 kg for Mega-Strength 1). Then roll Might as normal (without adding the extra
automatic successes). Each success on the roll increases the amount the nova
can lift by 20%. Thus, a nova with Mega-Strength 1 and three successes on his
roll could lift 1600 kg, or about 1.76 tons.
When hurling objects, characters with
Mega-Strength may throw anything that weighs less than or equal to their base
lifting capacity, using the normal rules for throwing. However, when throwing an object of a mass is less than
half their base lifting ability, Mega-Strong novas may multiply their normal throwing
distance times their automatic successes. Mega-Strength is particularly
effective in personal combat. The following table indicates automatic damage
successes applied to any close combat attack made by a character with
Mega-Strength. When resisting, maintaining or breaking out of disarms, clinches
and holds, use the rules for "Competing Mega-Attributes"; thus, most
Mega-Strong combatants are deadly in grappling contests.
For each dot in Mega-Strength, a nova can carry up to 100
kilograms of weight without being encumbered. At higher levels, the Storyteller
may wish to increase this capacity even further.
Mega-Strong novas almost always have Mega-Stamina as
well.
• Stupendous: Olympic weightlifters look at you in awe.
You deadlift 1000 kg (one ton) and gain [5] automatic
successes to Strength/Might rolls and close combat damage dice pools.
•• Amazing: When your moving truck breaks down, you just
pick it up and carry it to your new home. You deadlift
10,000 kg (10 tons) and gain [10] automatic successes to Strength/ Might rolls
and close combat damage dice pools.
••• Incredible: You can toss automobiles for blocks. You deadlift 25,000 kg (25 tons) and gain [15] automatic
successes to Strength/Might rolls and close combat damage dice pools.
•••• Spectacular: You can juggle tanks. You deadlift 50,000 kg (50 tons) and gain [20] automatic
successes to Strength/ Might rolls and close combat damage dice pools.
••••• Godlike: Even other novas are impressed by your
physical might. You deadlift 100,000 kg (100 tons)
and gain [25] automatic successes to Strength/ Might rolls and close combat
damage dice pools.
Mega-Strength
Enhancements
Enhancements that characters with Mega-Strength may learn
or purchase include:
Crush
Mega-Strength is, by itself, enough to cause deadly
damage to many people — most normal humans can't survive blows from someone
strong enough to pick up and throw cars. However, novas with this power have
refined their ability to use Mega-Strength to kill. They are adept at grabbing
and crushing people, delivering punches powerful and focused enough to go through
a body, and so on.
System: Strength damage is normally bashing damage. A
nova with this ability inflicts Brawl and Martial Arts damage (modified by his
Mega-Strength, as usual) as lethal damage when he takes a full turn to
focus his attack and spends a quantum point. The Crush attack is made the
following turn, on the nova's Initiative. This enhancement lasts for one
strike, but it can be reactivated as often as the nova likes, so long as she has
the quantum points.
Shockwave
Who needs the
System: When a nova uses this enhancement, he may roll
his Mega-Strength dice as a bashing damage dice pool to most targets within a
radius equal to (Mega- Strength x 10 meters). Any target on the ground is
affected; targets above the ground are not. Anyone affected falls to the ground
unless he makes a Strength roll (at difficulty +3) to keep his feet. Targets
may take extra damage if other objects (such as falling crockery or collapsing
tunnels) fall on them. Additionally, the surface the nova is hitting also
suffers damage as though the nova had made a normal Mega-Strength strike — so
it isn't a very good idea for a character to use this maneuver when he is on
things like aircraft, bridges or boats.
This enhancement stays active for a single attack, and
the nova may make only one Shockwave attack per turn.
Lifter
A Mega-Strong nova with this enhancement is really strong
— he makes even other Mega-Strong novas look puny. He's the guy to call when
you need to move something like, say, a mountain.
System: The nova can double the
amount of weight he can carry for each quantum point he spends. For example, a
nova who spends four quantum points on Lifter can
carry 16 times his normal weight limit (!). However, the character does not
inflict any extra damage with punches or similar attacks. At the Storyteller's
discretion, the character's ability to throw heavy objects may be increased in
a similar fashion, but only to throw them for distance, not damage (for
example, to throw a tank into orbit, but not to throw another character into a
wall and hurt him).
This enhancement stays active for one scene or one
"feat of strength," whichever comes first.
Quantum Leap
The character's leg muscles are prodigiously strong — so much
so that she can leap enormous distances. Faster than the
subway and twice as fun.
System: A character with this enhancement covers far more
distance in a leap than the usual two meters per success on a Jumping roll.
Instead, each success on a Jumping roll allows the nova to leap up to two
kilometers horizontally, or half a kilometer vertically, times her number of
dots in Mega-Strength (of course, she can choose to leap less far than this if
she so desires). Thus, a nova with Mega-Strength 3 and Quantum Leap could cover
six kilometers horizontally, or one and a half kilometers vertically, for each
success.
Don't forget that such prodigious jumps are essentially
an uncontrolled form of movement. Once she launches herself, a nova can't
deviate from her line of "flight," do much to dodge attacks or avoid
obstacles. Unless she has a power that allows her to see for many kilometers,
she won't know where she's going to land until it comes into sight — and it
won't necessarily be a pleasant landing spot.
The character may also use this enhancement to make a
normal Dodge roll against area and explosive attacks, provided she spends the
quantum point and takes a defensive action.
This enhancement stays active for one leap.
Thunderclap
When the nova claps his hands together, a tremendous
burst of sound and air pressure cracks forth. The force of the effect is enough
to hurt people, break windows and cause similar damage or harm in a nearby
area.
System: When a nova uses this enhancement, he may roll
his Mega-Strength dice as a bashing damage dice pool to most targets within a
radius equal to (Mega-Strength x 10 meters). However, "hard" targets
— such as most walls, vehicles or metal objects — and extremely
"soft" targets — such as cloth — are not affected. Only living
creatures and relatively brittle or fragile things, such as glass, take the
damage.
This enhancement stays active for a single attack, and
the nova may make only one Thunderclap attack per turn.