Multi-Pilot/Multi-Owner Mech

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ZephyrMourne
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Multi-Pilot/Multi-Owner Mech

Post by ZephyrMourne »

I've been digging through the forums, and I've found several places where this is partially addressed or alluded to, but I can't seem to find anything definitive. Basically, what I have are two characters, one pilot, one engineer, who jointly pilot a single mech which will not function at all unless they are both onboard and linked to the mech's systems. As a result, assigning the Vehicle ability to a single character, even if it kept both characters within the Base 0 range, is wrong for flavor reason, more so because the mech is actually owned by the military organization that employs them.

To further complicate matters, the mech is capable of splitting into two separate vehicles; one ground assault vehicle and one fighter jet. In this form, the individual vehicles gain some new abilities and lose others. I've considered applying a sort of modified version of Transformation to the mech to account for this, maybe applying half the available point total gained from Transformation to each vehicle. My main concern here is this portion of the Transformation rules:

"Any Abilities and Weaknesses gained through this transformation are cumulative with your character’s own, enhancing or diminishing any natural attributes."

Simply ignoring this aspect of Transformation is a larger departure from t he rules as written than I think may be safe at my current experience level with OVA.

My current thought on the matter is that the two human characters should just be built independently, and the mech itself should be built as something external to each of them, almost like a separate character, adhering to the same Base 0 rules, but utilizing the vehicle rules for Endurance and Health, and with some sort of unique weakness like "Inanimate -5" or something like that to indicate it cannot function in any way without both pilots.

Even as I type this, it sounds more complicate than I suspect it should be, so I'm hoping some of you more experienced players can point me in the right direction here.
Sabersonic
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Re: Multi-Pilot/Multi-Owner Mech

Post by Sabersonic »

I'll try to answer the best I can to your inquiries on your vehicle design idea.

For your first issue on said vehicle being owned by a separate organization, well as far as I can figure if it's a constant element to both characters then it should stand to reason that it'll be part of each character's profile and list of Abilities. Though I would only assume that said vehicle would have Weaknesses to reflect this fact. The closest OVA2e has for "Conditional Ownership" however, would be Restricted Freedom and Servitude with notations as to whom actually owns said vehicle and to how much oversight it has. Of course, you are free to create your own Unique "Conditional Ownership" Weakness if you so feel.

For your vehicle's ability to split into sub-mecha, might I suggest Clay's suggestion of either Fusion or Combined Form custom abilities?

The gist of Fusion/Combined Form is that it's a mutation of the Transformation Ability where the costs would be shared between the two involved charaters/vehicles/mecha and would potentially have the same gameplay rules as the default Transformation Ability.

As for the vehicle/mecha being unable to function without its pilot/engineer? Well I would suggest Focus at Level 3 as an option with the notation that both characters must be onboard. There's also Trigger and Suppressed Power but I think those are largely for singular abilities rather than the entire design in question. Of course, like earlier, there's always the choice to make a Unique Weakness.

Oh and before I forget, the Unique "Innate" Weakness you proposed? Since it's a vehicle/mecha, it's implied that it's a prop rather than an NPC so it's not really required as far as I can figure.
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ZephyrMourne
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Re: Multi-Pilot/Multi-Owner Mech

Post by ZephyrMourne »

That's very helpful, and gave me some ideas I hadn't considered, but I'm not clear ababoutow I would split the cost of the Vehicle (mecha) ability between the two characters, unless I built it using the vehicle forms first and then used the "Fusion" ability to combine them into the main form. It feels like a little bit of a cheat from a story perspective, but I guess it could work.
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Re: Multi-Pilot/Multi-Owner Mech

Post by Sabersonic »

ZephyrMourne wrote:That's very helpful, and gave me some ideas I hadn't considered, but I'm not clear ababoutow I would split the cost of the Vehicle (mecha) ability between the two characters, unless I built it using the vehicle forms first and then used the "Fusion" ability to combine them into the main form. It feels like a little bit of a cheat from a story perspective, but I guess it could work.
Well it'll probably depend upon the GM in question, but I am of the opinion that if you take Fusion/Combined Form and divided into an equal number of constituents involved and place them upon each design.

I'm sure Clay has a better approach towards the splitting of the cost for Fusion/Combined Form, but I think I can offer this version as a stop-gap until a better solution comes along. Though be forewarned, it really hasn't been peer-reviewed nor play-tested:
Combined Form – You have an ability that few others possess; the ability to transform into a completely different, more powerful version of yourself. As such, for each level you have in this ability you may spend four times as much in abilities to create a completely new character/vehicle/mecha. The real kicker? Said costs must be shared with at least one other character equally and in order for you to succeed in the Combined Form with the other character(s), a successful dice check against a Difficulty Number equal to the level of the attribute. Additionally, it takes an equal number of turns to the Attribute Level for the Fusion to be completed, meaning that it can be interrupted by outside parties.

Though the possibilities are limitless with Combined Form, for effective game balance it is suggested that the use of the ability to be limited to only twice in a single Adventure, and that the total Ability Levels should be no more than half over the average value of the participating characters.
If anything, it might give you some ideas on how to approach Fusion/Combined Form.
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ZephyrMourne
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Re: Multi-Pilot/Multi-Owner Mech

Post by ZephyrMourne »

Sorry, I've been adulting. Thanks for the response. That ability does help a lot. I may change it up a bit to make it fit the dual-character situation, but it definitely helps with the direction.

I might work up the characters this weekend and post it here and see if anyone can help me improve it from there.
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Re: Multi-Pilot/Multi-Owner Mech

Post by ZephyrMourne »

Okay, so I think what I'm going to do is have the players build characters with Base 0, and then either give them 20-25 points to build a mech or spacecraft, or let them choose from the "standard issue" military models I'll build.

I am doing this because, while mech/spacecraft combat will be a major theme in the game, the majority of the combat will likely take place in corridors and alien landscapes, PC to NPC, sans mech, so I want the characters to be fully capable and functional without their vehicles or mechs.

I haven't yet worked out how to handle the separation/vehicle mode for my main mech, but here's what I have so far, and I'd appreciate any input (some notes in parentheses are just for my personal reference).

Pilot
Concept: Impulsive Mech Pilot
Health - 40
Endurance -40

Abilities:
Attack (x3) +2 (Fusion Pistol)
- Fusion Blast -
  • Accurate +5
    Ranged +0
    Weapon -5
- Overload -
  • Area Effect +20 (Circular explosion, 6 targets, -2 Defense dice)
    Effective +10 (add'l x2 DX)
    Activation -10 (1rd)
    Ammunition -15 (self-destruct)
    Weapon -5
Beautiful +2
Combat Expert +2
Evasive +1
Heightened Sense (Night Vision - Cybernetic Eye) +1
Iron-Willed +1
Knowledge (Propulsion Systems) +2 [1/2]
Knowledge (Military Tactics) +1
Passion (Aerial/Space Combat) +2
Perceptive +1
Pilot +4
Quick +2
Vigorous +1

Weaknesses:
Arrogant -1
Code of Conduct (military) -2
Guardian -1
Impulsive -1
Infamous -1
Love Interest -2
Obsession -2
Overconfident -2
Room for Two -2
Servitude (military) -2
Stubborn -1

Mechanic
Concept: Enthusiastic Mech Engineer
Health - 40
Endurance -40

Abilities:
Attack (x3) +2 (Fusion Pistol)
- Fusion Blast -
  • Accurate +5
    Ranged +0
    Weapon -5
- Overload -
  • Area Effect +20 (Circular explosion, 6 targets, -2 Defense dice)
    Effective +10 (add'l x2 DX)
    Activation -10 (1rd)
    Ammunition -15 (self-destruct)
    Weapon -5
Cute +1
Combat Expert +1
Cute +1
Dexterous +2
Intuitive +2
Inventor +3
Iron-Willed +1
Knowledge (Mech/Starship Engineering) +4 (1/2)
Knowledge (Programming) +2 (1/2)
Pilot +1
Smart +3

Weaknesses:
Absent-Minded -1
Ageism -1
Code of Conduct (military) -2
Compuslion (tinker) -1
Fussy -1
Guardian
Kind-Hearted -2
Love Interest -1
Room for Two -2
Servitude (military) -2
Shy -2
Soft Spot (mechs/vehicles) -1

Mech
Concept: Prototype Combat Mech
Health: 40
Endurance: 40

Abilities:
Agile +2 (replaces pilot's ability)
Attack (x4) +3
- Rail Rifle[0] -
  • Armor Piercing +5
    Barrier Buster +10
    Effective +10
    Ranged +0
    Activation -10
    Weapon -5
    Requirement -10 (only in a vacuum)
    Affinity: Projectile
- Hip Cannons[0] -
  • Accurate +5
    Ranged +0
    Ineffective -5
    Affinity: Plasma
- Reactor Wave[15] -
  • Area Effect +10 (cone, from chest)
    Defensive +5
    Effective +15
    Continued Effect +10
    Ammunition -15
    Buildup -5
    Unwieldy -5
    Affinity: Shockwave
- Pummeling Barrage[0] -
  • Armor Piercing +10
    Effective +5
    Overwhelming +15
    Elaborate Gestures -5
    Open to Attack -25
    Affinity: Hand to Hand
Armored +4
Barrier +3
Combat Expert +2 (enhances pilot's ability)
Evasive +2 (enhances pilot's ability)
Flight +2
Life Support +3
Perceptive +3 (replaces pilot's ability)
Psychic +2
Quick +1 (enhances pilot's ability)
Resistance (EMP)+3
Strong +4 (replaces pilot's ability)
Tough +1
*Unique Ability: Bio-Link +1

Weaknesses:
Awkward Size -1
Bizarre Appearance -2
Focus (Pilot and Copilot) -4
Guardian -3
Servitude -3
Wanted -3

*Bio-Link - This link allows monitoring/access to the mech's systems by mere thought and allows the pilot and copilot to see and feel through the mech's optical and other sensors. It also allows the pilot and copilot to communicate telepathically with each other. This makes the mech much more responsive during combat. Bio-Link dice can be added to Defense or Pilot checks made by the pilot or copilot. Once the pilot/copilot have become synchronized through the bio-link, telepathic communication remains in effect and cannot be disabled, eliminating the ability of the pair to have a private thought (in game terms, both now suffer from "Room for Two")
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