Full Version: Killing Hands and Spirits
If an Adept with the Killing Hands power attacks a spirit, it eliminates the spirit's immunity to normal weapons. Does that mean the spirit has no "armor" value at all with which to resist damage? They would only use their Body attribute to stage it down on a successful hit?
Yes. Note that Killing Hands can be used by an Astrally Perceiving Adept to attack a spirit in Astral Form, but it cannot be used by a purely Physical Adept against a spirit until that spirit materializes or possesses something.
-Frank
-Frank
Killing hands and weapon foci are great for damaging a spirit when you hit it. However, hitting it at all is no cakewalk. They all have dodge and unarmed combat equal to their Force, and tend to have reactions higher than their force (even the slower ones such as earth elementals). A mere Force: 3 air spirit, for example, gets to roll 10 dice to dodge or block a melee attack.
| QUOTE (Glyph @ Oct 1 2006, 04:29 PM) |
| Killing hands and weapon foci are great for damaging a spirit when you hit it. However, hitting it at all is no cakewalk. They all have dodge and unarmed combat equal to their Force, and tend to have reactions higher than their force (even the slower ones such as earth elementals). A mere Force: 3 air spirit, for example, gets to roll 10 dice to dodge or block a melee attack. |
true, but then we're talking about melee adepts most likely if you're looking at killing hands.
they will likely have at least a 5-8 agility, 5-6 skill, 2 specialisation, 2-3 improved skill, and as such are fairly likely to have a dice pool ranging from 14-19 dice. (8 agility is certainly less likely, but on a strongly melee based adept not too horribly unlikely. particularly if they have time for the agility boost power!).
of course, if we're talking about a magician with a weapon focus then they would be hard to hit in melee... but considering a mage really should just blow the karma they would have spent on banishing to know a slay spirits spell, (or failing that don't spend extra karma and just know stunbolt since it's a useful spell anyways), i can't imagine why a mage would be worried about hitting the spirit in melee anyways.
[edit] though of course, higher force spirits would still be hard to hit for even a melee adept... but then, if you're dealing with force 7+ spirits on a regular basis, you really should get yourself a mage so that you aren't just a greasy smear on the floor anyways. or maybe a troll archer adept... [/edit]
Of couse, with Energy Aura you may be happy you missed that Force 7+ spirit...
that's why you need the previously mentioned troll archer adepts 
with a good agility (6-7 i would say), improved ability in bows, and a crazy troll bow of doom (and of course a high strength... many bow adepts would in fact use cyber for attribute boosts imo) you could be tossing around 11P or more damage from chargen... which is enough to hurt most spirits you'll be facing. heck, you could even have troll street samurai doing almost as well, and not even being overspecialized.
or of course, now that street magic is out, you can do horrible, horrible things with thrown weapons too
with a good agility (6-7 i would say), improved ability in bows, and a crazy troll bow of doom (and of course a high strength... many bow adepts would in fact use cyber for attribute boosts imo) you could be tossing around 11P or more damage from chargen... which is enough to hurt most spirits you'll be facing. heck, you could even have troll street samurai doing almost as well, and not even being overspecialized.
or of course, now that street magic is out, you can do horrible, horrible things with thrown weapons too
But you're still better off with a called shot from a sniper rifle firing APDS.
8P w/ -7AP is a better base setup for beating Immunity to Normal Weapons than 11P is and it's only a simple action to fire.
-Frank
8P w/ -7AP is a better base setup for beating Immunity to Normal Weapons than 11P is and it's only a simple action to fire.
-Frank
It's really two different paths to a similar result.
The bonus is that a troll adept and bow of doom is completely legal, and doable at creation, while a sniper rifle with APDS is neither.
The bonus is that a troll adept and bow of doom is completely legal, and doable at creation, while a sniper rifle with APDS is neither.
Sniper rifle is legal but APDS is not. Sniper rifle and EX-EX is legal and doable.
Yeah the Troll Physical Adept in my game didn't even break stride as he close lined a Force 4 Fire Elemental. One hit and dead. THen again most everything is one hit and dead from that monster of a character.
The troll in my table game, doesnt even bother to load his shotgun any more...he just closes in and hits his target with it...he does more damage. (that and the repeated blows that rain after the first)
| QUOTE (FrankTrollman) |
| But you're still better off with a called shot from a sniper rifle firing APDS. 8P w/ -7AP is a better base setup for beating Immunity to Normal Weapons than 11P is and it's only a simple action to fire. -Frank |
...or a fiesty dwarf doctor with a PJSS firing both barrels laoded with EXEX [13P with -5AP] and EXEX is easier to get at chargen & during play.
the both barrels loaded part won't help get through spirit armor though.
| QUOTE (Jaid) |
| the both barrels loaded part won't help get through spirit armor though. |
...that only reduces the DV to 12 and gives him 2 shots (still with an AP of -5).
just to clarify, if it does go through, it will still deal more damage... it just doesn't help penetrate the armor in the first place.
Getting a mage up to speed with a weapon focus isn't that hard. Agil 4, skill 4 w/ a specialty, and a force 2 focus is 12 dice, and Agility comes in handy for all sorts of crazy things.
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