Force Push

• Subtype: Telekinesis
• Prerequisite: None
• Source: 3.2

Brief

Description

Force Push was the ability to create a telekinetic impulse via the Force, launching a concussive burst of pressurized air-not unlike the blast of an archaic 'pipe bomb'-that would impact a target with enough force to knock it over, launch it into the air, or even (particularly in the case of fragile materials such as ceramics) shatter it into pieces. The greater the user's telekinetic aptitude, the larger the pressure differential, and thus the stronger the effect and the heavier the target. With practice, a skilled Force user could increase the range and arc of the blast without lowering the average kinetic energy, creating a blanketed wave instead of a focused impulse. Truly gifted practitioners could generate a concussive blast that would radiate from them for dozens of meters in all directions, detonating with the force of a conventional explosive.

Techniques

• Billiards: You may push the subject at another subject or an unyielding surface, with the intention of causing harm to the subject, the target, or both. When used in this manner, the action becomes standard, and the power requires an attack (vs Reflex) to hit the initial subject. From there:
  • Pushing into a surface: Assuming the surface is within the push distance (after any mitigating factors are applied), the subject strikes it, suffering 1d8 + Willpower kinetic damage.
  • Pushing into another target: Roll an attack against the secondary target (vs Reflex). Size modifiers apply (based on the size of the pushed subject). Then:
    • Miss: If the attack fails, the pushed subject misses the secondary one. If the pushed subject still strikes a surface within the push distance, treat as pushing into a surface. Otherwise, treat as an ordinary push.
    • Hit: If the attack hits, both subjects suffer half of 1d8 + Willpower kinetic damage. Also, see Notes for damage modifiers.
• Bowling for Droids: (Knowledge 5, Willpower 5, requires Billiards). When you push one subject into another, the secondary subject is also pushed for half the original distance, in the same direction. The secondary subject can now strike a tertiary subject, who can in turn strike a quaternary subject, and so on, halving the push distance each time (rounding down; when it reaches 0, that's it). (Special adjudication: a tightly-packed formation allows for one subject to strike multiple subjects, causing a chain reaction that generally obeys a "cone" area.)
• Disarm: You may use the power to push a held weapon or item, effectively disarming foes at range. Use normal disarm rules, with this skill as your disarm check. (Item's size still matters, for purposes of push resistance, but wielder's size does not)
• Knockdown: (Knowledge 5) After being pushed, subject falls prone (Reflex negates). (If using Billiards to push into a secondary target, and you hit, both fall prone)
• Pull: Can pull instead of push.
• Punt: (Knowledge 10) Can thrust upward instead of push.
• Repulse: (Costs 1 FP) Becomes a close burst 3, radially pushing all subjects. Cannot use Billiards in this case. Can be Widened.
• Size Matters Not: (Knowledge 5, Willpower 5, Costs 1 FP) Increases your effective size for the purposes of push resistance and damage. Stackable.
• Slide: (Knowledge 5) Can slide horizontally instead of push.
• Sphere: (Knowledge 10, Willpower 10, Costs 2 FP) You create a sphere of force 1 square in radius, which flies forward 1 square per Willpower. Everyone it touches is affected as if each were individually pushed by this power.
  • If you have Pull, you may cause the sphere to originate anywhere within range, then move toward you, pulling subjects in.
  • If you have Slide, the sphere may move however you wish, and the resultant slides may each be directed individually.
  • If you have Billiards, all subjects must be thrown at the same secondary target (if any), unless you hate your DM and fellow players, and want to spend 10 minutes rolling a million checks.
  • The sphere can be Widened. Ignores push resistance of any subject that fits entirely inside.
  • Because the sphere is an area, no attack roll is required to pick up and hurl subjects that it intersects. Billiards attacks still require an attack roll to hit a secondary target.
• Vortex: (Knowledge 15, Willpower 15, Costs 3 FP, requires Sphere) Everyone caught in the sphere flies around randomly, smashing into each other, before ultimately being hurled out. Each target suffers 1d8 + Willpower damage, before any other effects are taken into consideration.
• Sustained Vortex: (Knowledge 20, Willpower 20, Costs 4 FP, requires Vortex) As Vortex, but has a duration of sustain (swift). Sphere can continue to move each round, pickup up new subjects. Each round, you may choose to apply the final push/pull/slide, or not, to each target individually. It is possible to pick up a target with the sphere after hurling him out in a previous action.

Notes

• Empower adds +5 squares.
• Reminder: creatures larger than you have 50% push resistance per category of difference. By the same token, creatures smaller than you have 50% push vulnerability, and will be pushed correspondingly further.
• Whenever damage is mentioned, it assumes the default push distance. Empower adds one die of damage. Push resistance/vulnerability affects the final damage.
  • When pushing a subject that is larger than Medium size, total damage is doubled for each category of difference. Generally, this is completely negated by the effect of Push Resistance on damage. However, in some cases, it applies.
    • The obvious example: you have Size Matters Not x2, so you can push a Huge object at a medium creature. With that technique, the Huge creature has no effective push resistance, so it moves at full speed. The total damage of the impact is four times normal, due to the effect of doubling twice.
  • Any damage resisted by the pushed subject due to Hardness or Damage Reduction is added as bonus damage to the secondary target. (Force Normal demands that the momentum has to go somewhere). Also, vice versa. But damage will not be reflected infinitely.