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In the Mistborn Adventure Game, a person who is a Misting has their Powers level set at Average. However, a Misting who burns Aluminum has an effectively worthless power since it requires the ability to burn other metals to do anything at all. This is why they are called an Aluminum Gnat.

So say for some reason I want to play an Aluminum Misting, whose only power is the ability to burn off any ingested aluminum. Do I set his Powers level at Average and gain a non-existent stunt (there are no stunts for Aluminum), or do I set his Powers level at Weak since there is no practical application for being an Aluminum Misting?

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    \$\begingroup\$ Never heard of the game, but great out of context title. \$\endgroup\$
    – Canageek
    Aug 19 '12 at 19:40
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    \$\begingroup\$ @Canageek You should check it out! It's based on the Mistborn books by Brandon Sanderson. Really fun system of magic, the particular one referenced in question requires you to have metal in your stomach to be able to access said power. \$\endgroup\$
    – Cthos
    Aug 20 '12 at 17:49
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As someone that's about to run a Mistborn game, I would allow someone to be an aluminum gnat to have "weak" powers. It's not technically following the rules (since as you point out, mistings are supposed to have "average" powers), but it seems like it would unnecessarily penalize the player to use their "average" slot on something that couldn't possibly help them.

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I think that it is worth pointing out that technically burning Aluminium uses up all metals in your system - not just the Aluminium. It could, for example, be used to destroy metals that you have obtained from another PC or NPC - to deny them their use or other such creative strategies. ;)

I would also frown upon allowing a player to select Weak as their power level to be an Aluminium (or Duralumin) Misting partially because it allows them to have higher Attributes or Standings, and because (as others have mentioned) they can gain other Allomantic or Feruchemical abilities via Heamalurgy - which would then make their 'Gnat' status no longer useful.

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    \$\begingroup\$ If the PCs are gaining abilities via hemalurgy then you probably have larger problems than incorrectly setting the power level of an aluminum Misting. \$\endgroup\$
    – Oblivious Sage ♦
    Feb 18 '16 at 19:46
  • \$\begingroup\$ @ObliviousSage: ...although the books do give at least one potential backstory for a "good" character with hemalurgic augmentation. (Trying not to spoil too much, here.) \$\endgroup\$
    – Ilmari Karonen
    Feb 18 '16 at 21:22
  • \$\begingroup\$ @IlmariKaronen None of the good, or even debatable, characters deliberately empower themselves via hemalurgy. There's only one good-ish character who even really understands how hemalurgy is used. \$\endgroup\$
    – Oblivious Sage ♦
    Feb 18 '16 at 21:27
  • \$\begingroup\$ @ObliviousSage - You say problems, I say ... plot potential. :) \$\endgroup\$
    – Vecna
    Feb 18 '16 at 22:19
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    \$\begingroup\$ @Vecna Ah yes, but what does "Stored" mean to the allomancer? Metal reserves that he has access to, or the actual metal in the stomach. That's unclear to me based on the books and the published materials we have for the game. Like is it destroying the investure, or is it simply consuming the metals? Either way though, swallowing the metals is a pretty effective way to get rid of someone else's stores, Aluminum misting or no. What's the allomancer going to do? Cut open your stomach to recover the contents? \$\endgroup\$
    – Cthos
    Feb 19 '16 at 17:49

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