if you pulse wave and a soaring flyer is in range (half for pulse wave, then half again for soaring ) is he affected

Yes. PW is a Ranged Combat Action, so it'll hit soaring figures just as easily as a Psychic Blast would. As you pointed out, though, the total range is quartered. Even Nimrod could only PW a soaring figure 3 squares away.

There is a subtlety here:

Soaring is an ability that can be 'taken away' by Outwit......and Pulse Wave ignores all powers, team abilities, and feats...etc. etc.

It might be easier if Outwit could counter the "ability to fly", but that is a different game

I fail to see where you are going with this. I have never stated, nor has trickster, that soaring is a team ability. He was asking if you could Pulse Wave a soaring figure and that answer is "yes, if it the figure is within one quarter of your range (half for soaring, half again for PW)".

Can you please explain what exactly you meant by your statement?

I believe he is under the assumption that Pulsewave ignore powers/Team Abilites etc. and that soaring being an ability is negated. Thus you wouldn't have to do half range for pulse wave and half again for soaring, just the half range for pulse wave.


Clear as mud? Good! Moving on....

Well if that's what he meant, then I guess I see where he's coming from... but there are a couple problems there.

First, soaring is not a power, team ability, or feat. It is a part of the special movement rules that all flying figures have. Pulse Wave does not ignore movement modes. In fact, the only reason Outwit even works on soaring is because a specific note is made regarding soaring the in the Outwit descripiton, not because soaring is a power.

Second, and were pretending for a moment that my first point doesn't exist, if Pulse Wave did somehow counter soaring, dropping the figure down to hovering temporarily, consider this: in order to counter power, TAs, and feats, the figure(s) must be within Pulse Wave range; you do not counter abilites on figures outside of this range. Basically, if you'd want to counter the soaring, the figure must be within 1/4 range in the first place to counter soaring. If it is outside 1/4 range, soaring will not be countered. But if it is within 1/4 range to be countered, it is within range to attack anway, so the whole point is moot.

normalview speaks truly.

The defense rests
Case closed (As if I had a case )

I'm just pointing out a subtelty of the rules, you'll notice I didn't claim that trickster was wrong

But I still don't understand, what subtlety? The fact that soaring is different from a team ability? Not to sound rude, but that isn't too subtle; that's pretty basic. Or was there something else I am missing?

Seriously, I'd like to understand what you meant. Please explain further (post here or PM, if you'd like).

I'm just pointing out that flight/soaring is in a class by itself, for instance:

Team abilities can be cancelled at the owners discretion, whereas the soaring ability can only be countered by opponent's Outwit (or Swingline attacks), or by using a move action.

A Swingline counter to soaring deals damage, but an Outwit counter does not.

Flight can not be, AFAIK, cancelled by the choice of the owning player (to be carried, or to take falling knockback) but can be (temporarily) countered by Swingline, or for the duration of Crosswinds.

Thank you. All of that information *is* very important to keep in mind (especially the fact that you can't cancel a figure's ability to fly so that it may be carried).

I just wasn't quite getting all that out of your first post. Thanks for clearing it up.