We continue with Power Advantages; there aren't that many of them, and so we'll also learn about Limitations today.
The next Advantage is Invisible Power Effects. This is pretty self-explanatory; your powers work, but no one can see them work. For example, Microwave Man can use his power to launch a microwave attack, which is invisible to the naked eye; this would be an Energy Blast or Ranged Killing Attack with Invisible Power Effects. There are two options for this advantage. First, your power is invisible to normal sight, but IR, UV, X-Ray and N-Ray Vision can still see it; this Advantage has a multiplier of +1/2. Or, your power is fully invisible to all forms of sight, which is a multiplier of +1. This Advantage doesn't count for calculating the END cost of the power.
Power Affects Desolidified Objects is a wordy name, but it basically means what it says: The power can affect desolidified targets, including people. The multiplier is +1/2, and the cost of this advantage is not counted for the purposes of how much END the power costs to use. Looking ahead, I can see that all the advantages on this page also have that feature, so I won't repeat it again. The ones on the previous page, however, do not; I didn't forget about them.
Next is Range, which is just as obvious as the last one; contact powers can be used at range. Examples would be Characteristic Drain or Darkness. The usual range modifier (-1 per 3") applies to any attacks made. The multiplier is +1/2.
Reduced Endurance is a long-time favorite. This one makes it less tiring to use your powers. However, it works differently in this edition than it does in later ones (at least, 4th edition and later). Each level of Reduced END is a +1/4 multiplier, and you can take it several times. Each time you take it, the END cost of the power is reduced by half. The example here is of the Invisibility power, and we get our first confirmation of how END is calculated: 1 END for every 5 points in the power. Invisibility costs 40 points at a minimum, so the END cost is 8. Damn, that's hefty. No wonder you get 2 END per point spent on the characteristic; you need a lot. So, reducing this by half would cost 10 additional points (1/4 of 40), and reduce the END to 4 per use. You can do it again, paying 10 points and dropping it to 2 END per use. Now the power cost you 60 points, but it doesn't tire you out. If you reduce the END to 1/2 Pip or less through multiple purchases of the multiplier, the power now costs 0 END to use. For example, if you bought Reduced END twice more for the Invisibility power, that would reduce the END to 1/2 Pip, so for a total cost of 80 points you would pay 0 END to use your Invisibility. Is it worth it? I doubt it, but like I said, it works differently in later editions.
Okay, the final Advantage in this edition is Usable on Others. This means that powers that would normally affect only you will now affect others; it requires an attack roll, and it's not at range; you have to touch the target (unless you also buy the Range advantage). Examples here are Invisibility, Enhanced Senses, and Regeneration; with this advantage you can give someone else this ability, although it is under your control. For example, the Invisible Woman can make other objects or people invisible; her Invisibility would be bought with this Advantage. The multiplier is +1/2.
And that is it for Power Advantages in the 1st edition. There are only eleven Advantages in total here, but they cover a surprisingly wide range of abilities.
Next, we get into Power Limitations. These are the opposite of Advantages; they weaken the power in some manner, giving you a discount on the cost. Like Advantages, these are measured in multipliers. You calculate the discount just as you would the additional cost of Advantages: Active Cost divided by the total of the Limitation multipliers plus one to get the Real Cost. Rounding is used.
For example, if Iron Man has 20" of Flight (40 Active Points) with the Limitation Focus: Jet Boots (Obvious, Inaccessible), the multiplier is +1/2, which means the Real Cost is 40 / (1 + 1/2) = 26 2/3, rounded up to 27. Another example is an energy pistol, which is a 6D6 Energy Blast (30 points) with 10 shots (a +1/4 Limitation) in an Obvious Accessible Focus (+1 Lim), which gives a formula of 30 / 1 + 1 + 1/4, which results in a Real Cost of 13 1/3, rounded down to 13 points.
The only Limitation we get on this page is Activation; this represents a power that doesn't work all the time, such as an experimental weapon or a character who doesn't quite have full control of their power. There are three levels of Activation, with different multipliers for each. If the power usually works, you would have an Activation Roll of 14 or less, which is a +1/2 multiplier. If it works about half the time, that's a roll of 11 or less, and a +1 multiplier. And if it rarely works, it requires a roll of 8 or less to operate the power, and that's a +2 multiplier. Well, that would be a cheap power, but you wouldn't get to use it very often, which is kinda the point, isn't it?
So, that's it for Advantages and the beginning of Limitations. Next up...well, more Limitations.
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