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Mutant Revolution Online :: General Information :: FAQs & Newb Guide Series :: Newb Guide to Creating an Original Mutant Power

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Newb Guide to Creating an Original Mutant Power
« Thread Started on Feb 10, 2008, 10:57am »

This installment of the Newb Guide Series is for those people who would like some pointers on developing their character’s mutant ability for their character application.

What does it mean to be original?
Not copied directly from one of the existing X-men characters or a character from any other source.
Not taken already by a current MRO character. (You can double check to make sure your idea isn’t already being used by looking at the list of Taken Mutations.)

How do I get started thinking of an original idea?
There are lots of places you can go for inspiration if you are having trouble thinking of ideas. These are some ideas to help you get started brainstorming. (They can also be fun challenges for your creativity.)

Choose a random word from a dictionary and see if you can make a mutant power out of it.
Choose a random Magic the Gathering card and see if you can make a mutant power out of it.
Choose a body part and base the character’s mutation around that body part.
Choose a random object from the room you are sitting in. Can you base a mutation on that object?
Read up on mythology from different cultures around the world. Greek, Roman, Celtic, Norse, Chinese, Mayan, Incan, Native American, etc.
Choose an animal and base the character’s mutation on the abilities of that animal.
My character’s body is made completely of … (fill in the blank).
Think of something you have always wanted to do. Is there a mutant ability that would enable you to do that thing?
Get ideas from your favorite fantasy book or anime show. (If you base your power on an already existing character, tweak the power to make it your own.)
Think of the type of role you want your character to have. What power would best help them to fulfill that role?
Pick an object that is the most harmless object you can think of (Example: thread, flower petals, teddy bear). See if you can imagine a way to manipulate that object so it would be useful in a fight. Can you think of a power based on that?
Because we all love randomness... check out this random ability generator for ideas both silly and serious. (Try my personal favorite, the Grimore of Questionable Spells.)
Check out the list of superhero abilities on wikipedia for ideas. Pick one you like and personalize it with your own special touches!
Check out Garrett's Marvel Bible, also known as The Ultimate Powers Book. A wonderful resource almost too amazing for mortal eyes. Almost.
Check out Superpowerlist for a massive list of powers, it is being updated constantly. (Thank you Shin for the site address.)
Still need help? Visit the cbox at the bottom of every page. It is a great place to brainstorm with other people and bounce ideas around.

Can I have multiple powers for one character?
Powers for a character should be based on one central idea. Sometimes this means that more than one power stem from that one idea. For example, a character who controls wind might be able to fly because they are using the wind to lift their body through the air. You shouldn’t put two powers together that don’t have anything to do with each other, such as creating illusions and flying for example.

Generally you should have one power to start out. Power growths can be added later by emailing them to MutantRevolver@gmail.com

Balancing Strengths and Weaknesses
At MRO, we believe that the strengths of a power should be in balance with its weaknesses/limitations. Therefore: the greater your character’s power, the greater we’ll expect your character’s weaknesses/limitations to be. If you have more than one power, that means you'll have more than one set of weaknesses/limitations--you'll need one for each power.

When making a character, you should consider both the basics, and what would make your character interesting to play (and interesting for other people to play with). A good application has all the basics well-defined; the Moderators will work with you through e-mail until these are polished up. Occasionally, though, we get a new application that all of our members want to pounce on and RP with: these are the people who have gone above and beyond mere basics. Since weaknesses are half of your power... have fun with them!

Keep in mind that your character must always have weaknesses/limitations that balance their power, no matter how long you’ve RPed them on MRO. Weaknesses like “my character doesn’t have much training” tend to go away quickly; other, permanent weaknesses must still remain once those are gone.

Weaknesses/Limitations: the Basics

(Note: Some of these may not apply, depending upon your power. Also see our Attribute Profile System.)

“How far?” (Range limit.)
How far away can your teleporter jump? In what range can your telekinetic move objects? How far can your energy user shoot energy balls? Think about what range your character has.
“How much?” (Mass/volume limit.)
How much weight can your super strength character lift? How much water can your water manipulator handle at one time? How much air can your aeromancer affect at a time? For some powers, like water/air/etc, volume or another measure may make more sense then mass. Feel free to define your power in terms of a measurement, or more easily visualized things: ie, you can say your that your shadow jumper can take 200 lbs with him, or you can say that he can take the weight of another person with him.
“How many?” (Quantity limit.)
How many objects can your telekinetic keep in the air? How many brains can your psychic pwn at a time? How many golems/shadow beasties/clones can your character make and control?

Question: If your character affects more things, does that decrease the total mass/volume they can affect? (Typical answer: “yes.” For example, a telekinetic who can levitate 500 lbs total might be able to lift a 500 lb anvil, but keeping track of ten moving 50 lb anvils might strain their mind—perhaps they can only keep track of six or seven at a time, even though that’s below their total weight limit.)
“How long?”/“How many times?” (Time/usage limits.)
How many times can your sun absorber fire his awesome solar cannon? How long can your speedster stay at top speed? How many times can your shifter change forms per day?

Question: What happens if your character approaches or goes past their limits? Typical side-effects include headaches, migraines, nosebleeds, vomiting, seizures, fainting, coma, etc. Usually the more your character tries to push themselves, the worse these effects will get, until they simply can’t use their power anymore. On an application, the max number listed is the level at which your character literally can’t use that power anymore; they should experience side-effects leading up to it.
“What is it weak against?” (Pokémon-style weaknesses)
So, you’re a water user: how do you like electric attacks? Air elemental: do your powers quench fire, or is your entire body a flammable substance? Does your statue controller use so much brain power moving his minions that he’s wide open to psychic attacks? What happens to your shadow manipulator in the sun, or your light manipulator in the dark? Is your unicorn shifter unable to refuse orders from virgins? Take a second out to think if your power has any natural opposition, or elemental-esk weaknesses.

Weaknesses/Limitations: the Awesome Things
Everyone’s got basic weaknesses/limitations. The fun part starts when you make things unique to your character. Look at your character’s power: what weaknesses fit naturally with it? What weaknesses would be interesting, or fun to play?

A few examples from our members:

Gawain can walk through a mirror in his room, and come out of a mirror in yours. His twin sister Maya can do the same thing. Unfortunately for his dating prospects, he and his cute sis are actually the same person: every night, he/she involuntarily changes into her/him.
Saphirus can absorb kinetic energy without taking damage, and redirect it to boost his own attacks. The catch? He only absorbs attacks on the right side of his body, and he can only redirect the absorbed energy through his left side.
Luke can see the world through sonar, and fire laser-like blasts of sound. Unfortunately, his sonar completely robbed him of his normal vision: he’s blind. Every time he fires his sound laser, the range of his sonar “sight” decreases, leaving him more and more blind in the true sense of the term.

How do I know if my character is too powerful?
Try asking yourself these questions:

reality manipulator

If you answered yes to any of those questions, chances are your character might be over powered, meaning their power would not be balanced with the rest of the players on the site.

Some things you can do to restore the balance of your character:

How much detail should I use to describe my character’s ability?
The more detail the better. Details help all the other players understand how your ability works. We aren’t psychic, so spell everything out for us that you can!

How do I chose a name for my character?
These are just fun...
First and last name generator (mostly English names)
Fantasy name generator (lots of categories for names, including common names. There also links to lots of other random generators that could be useful if you have writter's block.)

Newb Guide Series

« Last Edit: Aug 8, 2010, 10:14am by Historian »

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