Possession mages have a spirit possess their bodies and add the spirit's Force to all their Physical stats and gain Immunity to Normal Weapons at the spirit's Force. That is really all that needs to be said.
Indeed. I've described characters of that sort to be 'toggle' characters, especially before they are able to initiate and gain Channeling. By that, I mean that they 'toggle' between two different roles, that of 'mage' and that of 'tank'. Actually, as for whether they are more or less powerful than other mages, that depends on weapons and tactics. Certainly, a possession mage with a high force spirit possessing him can wade into a group of gunmen and just lay waste to them in melee, but the materialization mage can have both spirit and mage acting, either in concert or against multiple foes. While the possession mage has more raw power, the materialization mage has more utility, and better adaptability. When a possession mage initiates and takes Channeling, they start being able to use their skills along with the enhanced physical abilities. Also, in my experience, normal mages are more effective at ranged attacks, while possession mages are more effective in melee.
Personally, I find that the best way to deal with the possession mage is to treat him like the troll tank. In other words, SnS, APDS, drugs/toxins, anything that does stun damage, etc. Another problem is that people get too focused on raw damage, and forget about tactics and battlefield control. If a possession mage is most dangerous in melee, then keep out of melee range. One thing I've noticed is that there are plenty of people who neglect melee skills, often believing melee to be useless in a gunfight. This is why, of course, a possession mage getting into melee seems even stronger than it actually is, because they are kitted out to do something no one else can. Likewise, a sniper with APDS dealing instant death on that first shot (since unaware characters get no defense) seems disproportionately strong, but that is due to them being able to do a role that no one else covers. You are seeing someone at their very best, so it is natural for them to look good.
Having re-read Mirikon's original post and rebuttal, I could have misinterpreted what he was saying in the first place. Maybe he was putting more emphasis on the "character" part, and less on his assumed methods and motives surrounding the word "build". I am sorry for any misinterpretation, Mirikon. I hope you can see that I wasn't accusing you of anything, it just seemed inconsistent to essentially say "I don't put together a char. for the numbers, but my favorite char. is a huge numbers char."
When putting the numbers together, I certainly do pay attention to making my character effective at what they're supposed to do. But yes, the character and the concept are always put together before I begin dealing with the numbers. No offense taken.
