Recently I have started to design a character in Mutants and Masterminds third edition, and have hit a snag. We start at power level 8, so could I only take 8 ranks in any power, or could I go as far as I want, providing, of course, I have the sufficient points. Is it possible to get powers at a rank beyond your power level? I can't find the rule in the SRD in the powers section, and nobody online is having the same issue.
[RPG] ny limit to how many ranks you can take in a power
character-creationmutants-and-mastermindsmutants-and-masterminds-3epowers
Best Answer
There are basically two sorts of powers, PL(Power Level)-limited ones and non-PL-limited ones. The first are anything that impacts a PL-limited trait such as an attack bonus, an attack rank, a defense bonus, a save bonus, or a skill check. Basically, no power can be bought that would put you over PL. That's simple enough, right? Any power that does not impact PL, such as something that gives you a higher rank of Movement, or gives you additional senses, or Immunity, is not limited by PL.
Note that tradeoffs mean that even PL-limited powers could have higher ranks than your PL. For example, a PL 8 character could have Damage 10 (Ranged) as long as his ranged attack bonus with that power is +6 or lower.
And, of course, the GM can decide that any given trait is limited. They are perfectly within their rights to veto Speed 20, or Regeneration 30.
I do not know if 3E explicitly noted it, but in 2E those ranks are supposed to be hard limits, so you can't over-buy to protect against a Weaken effect or to be able to shift caps on the fly.