Let's make some Flaws!

It's definately a flaw...And definately a 'well, it's got its good points...Kinda?" thing. Really up there on the power scale...Hrm.

Eh, I wouldn't mind having it as a familiar... but it's more of an inherent part of you. I dunno, really.

GAH! Stupid phone, I've had to type this up four times now.

Anyways, yes it could, technically, be considered a flaw. But, it's also rather complicated. NPCs can become difficult to juggle after a while, depending on the campaign, and this dealy forces one upon the GM. It would need severe re-working to simplify it to be as much the player's problem as possible, until it becomes (from a strict rules perspective) more of an extension of the player than a separate entity. Of course, RP flavor could easily change the in-character perspective of that; Heck, XandZero2 pulled that off with Ponykinesis, for dag's sake.

So see, by the time we got it worked out, we would A) have put in more work than I have on the rest of this thread, and B) have the groundwork laid out for a wide variety of assistants, minions, shadows, and what have you already anyways. Hence, my suggestion that we move it into it's own thread.

Which I will do tomorrow morning, provided that Real Life or another user don't beat me too it by then.

Frankly, I think there is just too much there for the talent to be considered seriously. It adds too much to the table. I'd prefer it to be simplified to about one paragraph...

Defineatly belongs in a familiar/follower/pet thread. It just happens to be an example of one that could also qualify for a flaw, like the cursed items I made.

On second thought... my phone is being uncooperative. So Familiars are gonna have to wait.

Besides, I checked the Core Rulebook, and there are several Boons that are similar. So some re-thinking might be in order on that subject.

Haunted
Prerequisite: Speak With The Dead
Your "Speak With The Dead" talent can be used three times a day, at no magic point cost. However, you gain the unwanted attention of the spirits of the deceased. At the start of a session or at the start of a new day (DMs discretion), have your DM roll a d20 in secret, to determine the type of spirit that will haunt you that day. The spirit is invisible to all but the haunted player, but can be heard by those with the "Speak With The Dead" talent. The spirit can only physically interact in the world of the living via ghostly ponykinesis. The spirit may appear at any time (DM's discretion) and will leave at the end of the day, at which point another roll is made.

Nat1 - Prankster spirit. It will harass the player constantly, causing them grave misfortune: Steer the player into trouble or harm, frame them for petty crimes, hindering skill checks, lying and spreading misinformation, or otherwise being a jerk. This spirit will pretend to be a helpful spirit for as long as it can, and is immune to effects that would force it to speak truthfully.

2-10 - Needy spirit. It will demand the player to fulfill a minor task, favor, last wish, or similar unfinished business that their death prevented from finishing. If refused, the spirit harasses them until the end of the day, causing a -3 penalty to all their skill checks, then leaves. If accepted, it will grant a +3 bonus to all skill checks for the rest of the day, but if the required task isn't done by the end of the day/session (DM's discretion), the spirit will then harass the player in their sleep, preventing them from regaining a magic point.

11-19 - Lover spirit. This spirit is searching for a long-lost love, who may be living or dead creature. Although not obligated to, the player may assist this spirit in finding the lover, which will grant them a magic point. This magic point persists until the end of the next session.

nat20 - Helpful spirit. It will be very kind and helpful to the player, assisting them in any way it can: Providing knowledge, assisting skill checks, or even warning them of danger.

Defenestrative urges
Whenever near a window or similar very fragile object, you must toss a coin. Failing the toss will give you a stacking -5 penalty to skill checks for the rest of the day, or until you throw a creature (except yourself) through/into the object in question, with enough force (or from sufficient height) to cause them injury. The defenestrative act is always treated as a critical success when attempted. You also gain a +10 bonus to breaking fragile materials, such as glass or china, and a +15 bonus to locating weaknesses or similar fragile spots in objects.

Colorblind
You cannot perceive colors, seeing the world as various shades of gray. Because of this, you have trouble recognizing ponies, as they all look the same to you. You suffer a -15 penalty to discerning cutie marks and a -10 penalty to identifying or recognizing creatures from afar (further than 20 feet), and are unable to discern any type of color, as well as are unable to see any magic being used. Your color blindness, however, allows you to see in the dark and makes you un-blindable by any means.

Yeah, my Dad is colorblind and it doesn't even begin to work that way.not being able to rely on color cues as well as other people he has become VERY detail oriented and skilled at memorization. In fact, he can recognize others from a greater distance than most as he is better skilled at picking out the details that help us tell each other apart due to his training to attention.

Whiteeyes wrote:Yeah, my Dad is colorblind and it doesn't even begin to work that way.not being able to rely on color cues as well as other people he has become VERY detail oriented and skilled at memorization. In fact, he can recognize others from a greater distance than most as he is better skilled at picking out the details that help us tell each other apart due to his training to attention.

This is a cartoon world though, that's really colorful, and a lot of the characters are literally defined by their colors (mane, coat, eyes) and cutie marks. And we've seen in Magic Duel how easy it is to "disguise" a pony with a color/hairstyle change. The downside of not seeing colors in a world of colorful equines needs to be enforced (via mechanic, like a penalty) somehow, otherwise it's not so much a flaw, so much as RP flavor.

And in real life, ponies/horses are *already* dichromatically colorblind (they see red as green).

The benefit from the color blindness I admit is completely unrealistic, I added it with weird cartoon logic in mind. I could change the benefit to have an extra magic point, or to have better history checks, or something. If you've got a better idea on how to give the downside a realistic "mechanic", feel free to share.

Maybe a bonus to perception against stealth or something? I suggest this because I remember hearing that the military actually uses black-and-white pictures instead of color for recon because it's easier to pick out camouflaged people/weapons/tanks/whatever else because...Well, the shapes are easier to pick out without the excess 'noise' of color getting in the way if that makes sense. As for the downside...Uhm, not sure what to go with there. O_o

Haunted could use some simplification, but is an otherwise great idea.

Defenestrative Urges is escaping me right now, I'll try again later... bit right now I don't get it.

Colorblind is also a good idea, but the bonus and penalty seem a bit skewed out of proportion. Cartoon logic is gonna have to be a given; if Whiteeyes is to be believed, then it won't be easy to portray it realistically.

I'll add them tomorrow... if you want to edit them yourself, you've got about 8-24 hours to do so before I take the liberty myself. Which I might do anyways. So there.

Defenestrative urges was based off of this D&D flaw of the same name, as well as general "you're a bull in a china shop" traits. Since PT is more or less run on cartoon logic (and has plenty of natural flyers), its drawback wouldn't be crippling in the presence of allies (and would probably be hilarious in the presence of enemies).The "bull in china shop" abilities were to keep it from being incredibly situational and give it a bit more "use". Perhaps the benefit of throwing creatures through a window would be a magic point gain?

Zarhon wrote:Defenestrative urges was based off of this D&D flaw of the same name, as well as general "you're a bull in a china shop" traits. Since PT is more or less run on cartoon logic (and has plenty of natural flyers), its drawback wouldn't be crippling in the presence of allies (and would probably be hilarious in the presence of enemies).The "bull in china shop" abilities were to keep it from being incredibly situational and give it a bit more "use". Perhaps the benefit of throwing creatures through a window would be a magic point gain?

With the right subject defenestration is a reward in and of itself.

...Well, drat. It's been two days and I still can't think of reasonable changes. Oh well.

and here I thought my comment had scared everyone away. Oh well.

Well I guess if we can't come up with anything better, Handy capable powers activate! Form of, Political Correctness! Shape of, Avoiding a Lawsuite!

EEEEEK! Lawyers! Get back!

Here, have another one! Just don't hurt me!

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Bigger Mac
You are much, much bigger than normal people. Your immense muscles and structure cause you to suffer a -3 penalty to Stealth and Acrobatics checks, and you sometimes have trouble getting into small spaces. You gain training in Stunts and Endurance.

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Storm Hopper

Something in you is fueled by electrical energy. You take no damage from lightning, thunder and electricity, and you may walk on storm clouds no matter your race; in addition, when struck by thunder, you gain 2d8 HP. In fact, you love it so much that when you don't get a jolt, you start to feel... twitchy. When you haven't been exposed to significant quantities of electricity for 24 hours, you begin to discharge your remaining electrical energy as storm clouds, which spread wherever you go and make you seem a bit unsavory; due to clouding, your trail and electricity, you take a -3 penalty to Perception, Persuasion and Stealth. Another 24 hours later, the clouds begin to strike randomly around you, dealing 2d8 to anyone they hit- which is generally allies. Another 24 hours later, you become faint, and the storms dissolve. You suffer from fatigue and a -5 to all rolls until you receive a jolt.

Change the name to Storm Hopper and I'm sold.

Storm Hopper's "flaw" seems incredibly easy to counter, if storm clouds are spammed behind you after not getting zapped a while. The 24hour scenario is unlikely to happen if storm clouds constantly show up (allowing easy access to a jolt which prevents the whole deal), and if it does happen, you can just have your allies get away from you for a minute and let the clouds zap you back into shape.

Oh, no. The clouds you generate aren't "fresh" electricity- they're electrical energy that you've already built up purging itself out of you. Even if you hit yourself with one of your own bolts, the energy just leaves your body and goes back into a storm cloud. You need fresh electricity to stop the clouds.

Thought of a new one today:

Cutie Pox (Needs Work)
Prerequisite: Fluctuating Cutie Mark
You gain an additional 3 uses of Fluctuating Cutie Mark. Moreover, instead of changing Cutie Marks, you now gain additional Cutie Marks. However, every time you use said Cutie Mark Skills, and don't use Fluctuating Cutie Mark, you lose one. If you only have one when this happens, it becomes an Anti Cutie - it gives a -5 penalty instead of a bonus. When you use Fluctuating Cutie Mark, the Anti Cutie reverts to normal; but, if you use an Anti Cutie, and don't use Fluctuating Cutie Mark, you gain additional Anti Cuties until you do.

Here's an idea:

Foreign Speaker

You are unable to speak normal Equestrian; your only language is something exotic like Prench. You are unable to speak with anypony who does not understand said language and are unable to write normal Equestrian. However, you gain an extra Freaky Knowledge for two subjects relating to your particular dialect, subject to Faust approval. (I.E. Speaking Prench might give you bonuses to Prench Cousine and Art.)

Doesn't seem to have enough kickback. It seems to just be FK with flavor.

The Warrior of Many Faces wrote:Here's an idea:

Foreign Speaker

You are unable to speak normal Equestrian; your only language is something exotic like Prench. You are unable to speak with anypony who does not understand said language and are unable to write normal Equestrian. However, you gain an extra Freaky Knowledge for two subjects relating to your particular dialect, subject to Faust approval. (I.E. Speaking Prench might give you bonuses to Prench Cousine and Art.)

Any particular inspiration?