The Dresden Files > DFRPG
How Do You Get Effect 'X'?
Odd Man Out:
--- Quote from: JosephKell on April 09, 2010, 11:15:51 PM ---I think this is Thaumaturgy and takes the form of enchanted items.
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I fully grant Thaumaturgy but, while I like Enchanted Items, they really shouldn't be required for all effects like this. Elaine's Hyperawareness Spell is a good example of the lines I'm thinking along.
--- Quote ---The reason why is because without storing the power somewhere it fades away pretty quickly (and remember, you craft as part of Thaumaturgy), so by the time you get to your car (from your magic space)
So if you wanted a "bull strength belt buckle" to function like Inhuman Strength for a few exchanges you probably need to devote 2 strength to the inhuman strength, then another strength for every extra exchange it functions for. So a 3 exchange belt might require a Lore of 5 (or an extra enchanted item slot per level of Lore under that).
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This might work as a good baseline, in fact I'm almost sure it does, but fails to address the point of wanting a similar effect on a briefer time scale. Making every increase an item feels off.
--- Quote ---Sounds a lot like the kinetic ring(s). Only maybe it is a string tied to a key that you keep in a jar (this is a Benjamin Franklin reference).
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I'm not thinking as an item. I'm talking a literal hand/focus full of lightning as a spell. Hm, Elaine may offer a starting point of such. It's essentially a more spontaneous version of her chain.
--- Quote ---I don't think this would work. You need something that understands the language to help (Lascial did this for Dresden at least twice).
I can see a ritual to translate something, just not a real time usage. In this case I would see something like an appropriate dictionary acting as a component.
I think it is easier to just up Scholarship (take a second correspondence course).
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Summoning might work, as could a handful of other things. Thought about a desk that, when loaded with proper reference material, could create rough but accurate translations of a work.
Thank you for the input. There's some good food for thought there, but none of them feel quite right so far.
JosephKell:
The only reason certain spells are stored in items is just for that, it contain it.
A "hyperawareness" spell that you pull off with no planning might be an evocation "block". Like a reverse veil "reducing" the target's Stealth?
But blocks are "expensive" in power.
I would assume any spell to augment a person to be similar to a block. Specifically, 1 shift of power extends the duration by 1 exchange. To rip through a door (which might take a few exchanges to accomplish) requires at least 1 shift for duration, otherwise the power you collected disappears before you use an action to take advantage of it.
DragonDM:
I must apologize, I have not had the privilege to read or test the Dresden Files RPG as of yet.
As such I must pull from other RPG games for references at times.
If I make any mistakes, simply correct them and continue.
I'll eventually get the time to read the response, as well as the DFRPG.
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I tend to see that Items last longer, until they are activated: in other words, the spell inside is in status for at least one day if the Test achieves base success. Each 'level' of Success after (Costing a Shift?) can increase this, from 7 days to 1 week, 4 weeks to 1 month, and 12 months to 1 year.
While there is a chance of the item losing Power, this is based on the Test Results for each item when it is made.
--- Quote from: Odd Man Out on April 09, 2010, 04:41:18 PM ---Scenario number 3; Harry gets sick of his poor Latin Skills landing him in awkward situations with the White Council and develops a spell that's literally nothing but a translator. Do I just treat this as a spell that boosts his Scholarship, does it add an Aspect, what?
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I would think that a Thamaturgic spell that allowed a 'direct connection between User and Person/Advisor' would be far more useful to the Magus.
Imagine Harry being able to use what looks like a Bluetooth to get advice from Bob, who can hear everything that he hears through it. Item Creation ability/skill, 5 Shifts + $5,000 Resources?
Making it even smaller, so that it's like those hearing aids that fit into your ear would be a lot harder to make (10 Shifts?) as well as costing higher (above base x10) Resources?
--- Quote from: JosephKell on April 09, 2010, 11:15:51 PM ---I think this is Thaumaturgy and takes the form of enchanted items. The reason why is because without storing the power somewhere it fades away pretty quickly (and remember, you craft as part of Thaumaturgy), so by the time you get to your car (from your magic space)
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--- Quote --- I think it is easier to just up Scholarship (take a second correspondence course).
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Raising Scholarship would always be the best way. Relying on someone/something else to translate for you means that you always have to keep a “High Level of Paranoid”, lest they 'deliberately' mis-translate (or leave out important details) on you. Example: Harry insists that every conversation with Bob is in Latin (pausing only to make sure that complete understanding is achieved) for a year.
LCDarkwood:
--- Quote from: Odd Man Out on April 09, 2010, 04:41:18 PM ---Alright, scenario number 1; I've got a focussed practitioner who specializes in Biomancy or Self-Enhancement Spells. How do most of these work if I want to; temporarily increase her speed/strength or alter her senses? I can see a few ways to handle short term boosts, what if I want it to last longer?
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Biomancy is a tough cookie to deal with, mainly due to lack of evidence from the books. We've seen a couple of examples of minor healing stuff, and we know that the specialty exists, but we haven't really seen a powerful practitioner let loose with the specialty.
The best way to deal with any kind of intermediate questions about magic effects is to ask yourself, "How would I mechanically represent this in the game according to the given constraints?" and then talk about how many total shifts you'd need to bring about the effect you wanted. The only other thing it says in the Biomancy entry is that the body might not be designed to handle the kinds of alterations you're doing, so you have to take that into account too.
So, let's look at a Might enhancement. You have no Might, and want to be able to use a Might of Superb for a certain length of time. So that's a 5-shift complexity ritual right off the bat. That's going to tax your body, and system logic suggests you'd express that as a consequence. You want to have this enhancement for a whole session, so we assume the consequence is a self-inflicted moderate one. You have a physical stress track of 3 boxes, and a moderate consequence is worth 4 stress, so inflicting a moderate consequence on you takes 7 shifts. You're looking at a 12-shift ritual. (Maybe, if you're generous, you don't charge for the stress and only ask for the 4 shifts, and it's a 9-shift ritual. It's up to you. I'd charge the 12, but whatevs.)
Now we can tell a story about how you prepare for this and do it. Make sense?
--- Quote ---Scenario number 2; A Sorcerer decides that containing a lightning bolt in his hand for awhile might be more useful than tossing it as a single strike. How could this be played out to; add damage to his Fists/Weapon attacks (would it just be a weapon of the power value, aimed with a relevant skill?) or keep it contained for an exchange or two to be released when the timing is right?
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Hm. So, again, we're talking about setting constraints - no one's ever done this in the books, and all Jim's prose seems to suggest that when you summon up the power for the evocation, you have to let it out somehow, directed and basically in a straight line toward your target. (I know, there's an edge case in Small Favor. Don't look at me like that.)
Assuming you're fine with it at your table, I'd just pay damage and maintenance and have done - you want a Weapon:3 "electrical aura" or whatever, and you want it for the next 5 exchanges, you're looking at an 8-shift evocation. You wouldn't get the benefit of using your Discipline as an attack roll because of how you're describing the effect, though - in that case, you're just controlling the manifestation of power. In fact, you wouldn't even be able to damage anyone in the same exchange you cast the spell. In subsequent exchanges, you'd have to roll Fists or Weapons to connect, and it'd just work like a normal weapon.
--- Quote ---Scenario number 3; Harry gets sick of his poor Latin Skills landing him in awkward situations with the White Council and develops a spell that's literally nothing but a translator. Do I just treat this as a spell that boosts his Scholarship, does it add an Aspect, what?
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If it were me, I'd honestly just let you do it, and then I'd have other wizards in the scene make fun of him for having to use a translation spell to communicate with them instead of learning Latin like a real wizard. :)
LCDarkwood:
--- Quote from: Madmacabre on April 09, 2010, 10:43:43 PM ---Also, could you copy effects sur as Inhuman/Supernatural STR or Toughness?
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If you were to imitate powers, I'd say you'd actually have to measure the effects of the powers in actual shifts, like any other kind of magic. The refresh costs are a really big price break for most powers, a concession to setting needs. I wouldn't measure by them for magic.
So, Inhuman Strength does all of the following:
+3 Might for lifting/breaking stuff
+1 to Might in grapples
+1 to modifications with Might regardless of actual score
Weapon:2 on Fists attacks.
If you want it all, that's 7 shifts' worth of effects, before we even get into talking about duration and what it'll cost your physical frame. See the previous post for that stuff.
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