Powers Classification System

Here is my Powers Classification System.

(That’s right, all caps)

 

How it is set up is using Source and Effects.

Source is how you gain or have the power. Effects is the use broken down into finer sub classifications.

To use example of two heroes we have seen:

Betony is a H:MyChV

Her power source is Hereditary, thus the H

The effects of her power are a description of her magic. Mystical (My), because it is magic oriented, Channeled (Ch), because she has to preform rituals to focus and cast it, and Variable (V), because it has many different uses.

 

While Roland is a E:PsiBM

His power comes from an Experiment (E)

His power effects are Psionic (Psi), because well he has psychic powers, Biological (B), because they originate within his own body not an outside source, and Mental (M), because of heightened mental facilities that the experiment has given him.

As you can see I am trying to be semi vague but give the system room to flex for the core rating. Afterward I can break down individual specifications with ratings from 1 to 10. 0 being baseline human. Anything higher than that is considered an extraordinary ability. The individual specifications for the heroes or villains I take care of as I create them.

 

This is what I have so far.

Source		Effects
Accident	A	Biological	B
Bestowed	B	Channeled	Ch
Experiment	E	Cosmic	C
Hereditary	H	Creative	Cr
Mutation	M	Elemental	El
Object	O	Energy	E
Unknown	U	Enhancement	En
Curse	C	Fortune	F
Constructed	Con	Intuitive	I
Training	T	Mental	M
		Mystical	My
		Paranormal	Pa
		Physical	Ph
		Psionic	Psi
		Scientific	Sci
		Supernatural	S
		Technical	Tec
		Variable	V
		Spatial	Sp

 

 

In the previous incarnation of this blog we had a good conversation about the powers and how they were combined and identified.

I have cleaned it up and posted it down below here for greater clarification. (Special thanks to Oliver and Oiliver. Yep 2 of them.)If you have ideas or questions of your own please post them in the comments.

 

 

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Questions and Answers

 

If Experiment covers the results of mad science, I assume Bestowed is for powers gifted by other entities (gods or spirits or whatever)?

Correct to both.

And Accident would be... the guy who gets hit by lightning and gets superpowers for no particular reasons? What about the guy who trips in a vat of radioactive goo/applied phlebotinum and starts throwing cosmic energy around, is he Accident or Experiment?

Both of these would be accidents. Unless he was experimenting on himself. And due to his procedures it happened. Then that would be classified as an Experiment.

What's the difference between Paranormal, Supernatural and Mystical?

Paranormal are Vampires, Werewolves and other Mythical creatures.

Supernatural is power or ability granted by a higher being that keeps on passing on from 1 generation to the next. (From here to eternity you and your descendants will have the ability to speak to frogs.)

 Mystical is magic use or magic based abilities.

 

What is Bestowed?

Bestowed is sort of a 1 off/first generation gift from a higher being. (I am choosing you to be the avatar of Laundry and Freedom) That ability stops with you and can be taken away at any time by that higher being.

 

What's Intuitive?

The person who picks up a TV remote and knows exactly every function of it and how it works. And who knows how to make it shoot laser beams with minimal modification. A gadetieer who makes things that science says cannot work is highly Intuitive.

 

Is Intuitive limited to the mad science? What about ESP? Precognition, clairvoyance... just knowing stuff.

 

Intuitive would go with them perfectly as well as something like knowing a martial art due to watching it in action in a movie. Or being a locater. (I don't know how, but I know the secret Vault is over there.)

 

Is Enhancement about people whose power lets them get a boost from normal, or is that covered by the number stuff?

Enhancement is an all-around boost to someone’s physical and mental abilities. They become essentially a better version of themselves. It covers a lot of small upgrades. Not any of which separately are enough for their own classification. You might heal a bit faster, or be a bit stronger or faster.

Energy is, what, shooting stuff? How about a force-field, is that Energy? Cause if I get two guys with the same A:E rating but one of them can only defend himself and the other can melt my face, that's a pretty significant difference. Or is it Creative? Is Creative about creating material stuff or would it include a psychic construct or whatever (something solid made out of "energy", to use the comic book term, instead of matter)?

 

Energy is eyebeams, beams shooting out of your hand, or armor constructed out of energy itself. A force field if coming out of a person is energy. A force field if coming out of your battle armor or O:E (Object: Energy) I am using it as sort of a catchall that gets explained in the details.

Both the guys in your example would have A:E, But Guy 1 would have Defense 4 added, while guy 2 would have something like Offensive 4, maybe Beam 4 or Caustic 4 because of the face melting part.

Creative is making your suit of battle armor, or a chemical that will make you grow 10 feet tall and purple and go smashy smash. Creative would also cover energy constructs. Made from your space... belt, an energy constructive space belt user would have O:CrEC, or something very close to that depending on his origin story

 

What about someone who's limited to manipulating existing stuff instead of creating his own? Someone who creates a flame out of nowhere is rated E, but what about Pyro from the X-Men?

 

Good one with Pyro. Maybe something like M:ElVCr? While he doesn't create it he can make it do whatever he wants. He would have something like Fire 1 Control 4 as sub classifications.

 

 

What's the difference between Scientific and Technical?

 

Scientific is using math to figure out that there is a parallel dimension full of brain eating vampires. (Reed Richards) Or what a detective would use to track a brain eating vampire serial killer. (Batman)

Technical is building a machine to travel there and let the brain eating vampires out and the suit of battle armor to fight them. (Tony Stark)

 

 

Correct me if I'm wrong: Biological means your powers come from your body and Physical means your powers affect your body?

 

Biological more meant it was a part of you/generated from you without any outside help.
Physical was more super strength, invulnerability, regeneration, super speed and powers along those lines. Your powers effected by your body.

 

How about draining? Draining ambient heat, draining electricity, draining your enemy's life force... It might be used to recharge your powers or simply be its own end.

 

Draining would be a form of Energy with the sub classification of draining or leech

 

 

 

 

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