Trappings allow the core powers presented in this chapter to have many different appearances. They don’t usually have a game effect of their own, but are important for atmosphere and theme and should guide power choice and use of modifiers and limitations to match the trapping.
One character might fire magical missiles of glowing white energy while another hurls deadly icicles. Both use the bolt power and share the same mechanics, but they look and “feel” different. Combined with modifiers and limitations they become even more distinct. Maybe the magic missiles have the hasty modifier so it can be cast as a limited free action while the deadly icicles have armor piercing as they shear through armor.
Trappings do matter if an obstacle or opponent has a specific strength or weakness. If an ice troll suffers +4 damage from fire- or heat-based attacks, for example, a blast a player describes as a fireball counts as a fire attack and does +4 damage.
A power's trappings must be described on taking the power. A power’s Trappings don’t change unless the caster uses an Advance—see Changing Trappings.
Sometimes logic dictates a power’s Trapping should have some additional effect. Zapping someone with a lightning bolt while they’re standing in water should cause additional damage, for example.
When this occurs, the GM can decide there’s synergy that either increases or decreases the effect or damage (GM’s call) by +2 or −2.
Oppositional forces, such as fire and ice or light and darkness, don’t usually have synergy against one another (though such effects are sometimes accounted for in some creatures’ Special Abilities). If a fire blast hits ice armor (protection), for example, there’s no additional effect because they cancel each other out.
A character can learn two new powers when he takes the New Powers Edge, or he may instead add Trappings (along with any desired Limitations) to his powers in place of one or two of the new powers.
A hero who takes the New Powers Edge, for example, could choose one new power and add an ice Trapping to her bolt. The GM may also allow a player to change the Trapping or Limitation of an existing power when she gains an Advance. This should reflect a major change in the character in some way as determined by the player and GM.