UNDER THE HOOD: CREATE OBJECT VS. SUMMON
Create Object and Summon are similar effects: both “create” things out
of nowhere. So when should a character have one and not the other?
Generally, Create Object makes inanimate objects, while Summon
creates or conjures creatures of some sort, capable of independent action (albeit limited in the case of mindless creatures like robots or zombies). So a character able to create “sculptures” of ice, for example: walls, slides, columns, and so forth, should have Create Object. A character able to call up animated snowmen, on the other hand, should have Summon, while a powerful “ice elemental” may very well have both effects!
Gamemasters looking for a good guideline to use in conjunction
with Create Object can compare it to Summon of a similar power rank.
Roughly, both effects create things with a power level equal to their
power rank (limited by the campaign’s power level, as usual), with
about 15 power points per rank. This amount may be lowered to around
5 points per rank for Create Object, simply because objects have only
one “ability score” (their Toughness) while creatures have many.
Use these additional points as a measure of the kinds of qualities
characters can bestow upon their created objects, if an object needs to
duplicate a particular effect as part of its structure or function.
For characters able to bring almost anything into existence, see the
Variable structure, although such a power is generally best treated as a
plot device and relegated solely to non-player characters.