The Dresden Files > DFRPG Resource Collection
Item Of Power Master List
Mr. Death:
SWORD OF TRUTH[-4]
Description: A longsword with a straight, double-edged blade, a forward-curved cross-guard, and the word "TRUTH" in raised silver on the grip.
Musts: You must have an aspect related to your position as the Seeker of Truth, appointed by the Senior Council.
Skills Affected: Discipline, Empathy, Weapons, social skills.
Effects:
[-0] Purpose. This sword is the weapon of the Seeker of Truth, whose purpose is to serve as an arbitrator of truth, uncoverer of deceit, and, when need be, executioner of those who spread lies and destruction.
[-0] It Is What It Is. It is a permanently-sharp longsword, treated as Weapon:3 in normal circumstances.
[-0] Unbreakable. As an Item of Power, this item cannot be broken except with a magical ritual predicated upon perverting its purpose.
[+2] One-Time Discount. This item is not easy to hide.
[+1] Master Your Anger Every time the sword is used to kill, the wielder will endure a mental attack equal to 4 shifts, feeling the pain of their target as they die. If the kill is made in anger, the wielder may roll Discipline or Empathy to defend. If the insulating power of anger is not present, the wielder rolls from 0. Any mental consequences incurred have to reflect the sword's power corrupting the wielder. The first time the sword is used to kill, the mental attack is at 6 shifts, and if the defense fails, change one of your permanent aspects to reflect that you failed to control the Sword's power.
[-1] I Am The Weapon If the rightful wielder should ever be separated from the sword, they can "feel" its location instinctively. You may use your Lore skill at +1 to locate the sword.
[-3] My Enemies Cannot Stop Me When wielded against someone the wielder perceives as an enemy, treat the resulting attack as Weapon:6. Additionally, you may spend a fate point to ignore any Armor rating the target may have. When wielded against someone the wielder does not consider an enemy, however, attacks automatically miss and cannot induce any stress.
[-1] The Sword Is My Shield As a blade imbued with powerful magics, you may use the Weapons skill to defend against magical evocations, as well as ranged Weapons attacks, but not bullets.
[-2] The Bringer Of Death The Sword of Truth's power is such that those who recognize it will tread a little lightly, lest they find themselves on the wrong end of the blade. All social skills are rolled at +1, and Intimidation rolls in particular are made at +2.
Optional Additions
[-3] The Dance With Death Those who can master the sword may be able to unlock its secrets. By taking part in the Dance With Death, the wielder gains access to the skill of all its previous wielders, granting a +2 bonus to Weapons rolls to attack and defend.
[-2] The Power Of Love Only a True Seeker can truly master the sword's unrelenting anger and turn the blade white by using their love and forgiveness to fuel the blade's power. The wielder must change an aspect to reflect that this change has taken place, and from then on does not have to suffer the mental conflict that comes with killing. Additionally, The wielder may spend a Fate Point to remove the restriction listed under the My Enemies Cannot Stop Me trapping, and can successfully attack those it does not perceive as enemies.
Sanctaphrax:
I think it needs work.
Master Your Anger isn't really a worthy rebate. It will only come into play when compelled and even when compelled it won't usually matter. This is better handled as an aspect.
I Am The Weapon is basically just a narrow Supernatural Sense with a random +1. I guess it's okay.
My Enemies Cannot Stop Me seems off. +3 stress for 3 refresh is not worth it. Ignoring armour generally isn't worth a fate point, unless that effect is supposed to be scene-long.
How often do you attack someone who isn't an enemy with a sword? I think that's better as a compel than as a part of the power.
The Sword Is My Shield is weak compared to Footwork.
The Bringer Of Death is okay, I guess, though I'd prefer a Marked By Power reflavour to a new power here.
The Dance With Death is basically True Aim, but more so. This is bad.
The Power Of Love looks really weak.
Mr. Death:
I suppose that's what I get for trying to make it more accurate to the book series it's from than balanced for a game. Let's see what we can do...
--- Quote from: Sanctaphrax on February 06, 2012, 02:46:21 AM ---Master Your Anger isn't really a worthy rebate. It will only come into play when compelled and even when compelled it won't usually matter. This is better handled as an aspect.
--- End quote ---
Hm...okay, how about lose the +1 discount, and to encourage it to happen more often, modify My Enemies Cannot Stop Me to have the ignore armor built in with the +3 to stress, but make it only activate when it's swung with intent to kill, and any Taken Out resulting from such an attack has to be fatal?
--- Quote ---My Enemies Cannot Stop Me seems off. +3 stress for 3 refresh is not worth it. Ignoring armour generally isn't worth a fate point, unless that effect is supposed to be scene-long.
How often do you attack someone who isn't an enemy with a sword? I think that's better as a compel than as a part of the power.
--- End quote ---
Not often, granted. As I said, I was modeling this after the book series, where this is an explicit power of the sword--and it has other uses. For instance, in said book series, the main character uses the sword to lever/chop a slave collar off a captive with the sword, and is mainly able to do so because the power allows him to do so without risking cutting the captive.
--- Quote ---The Sword Is My Shield is weak compared to Footwork.
--- End quote ---
I would add the bullets, but the intent of this power was that the wielder would be using the sword itself to deflect attacks, and while knives and other thrown weapons, and magic, would be easy enough to spot and deflect, bullets are another story.
--- Quote ---The Bringer Of Death is okay, I guess, though I'd prefer a Marked By Power reflavour to a new power here.
--- End quote ---
Funny you say that, because I'd originally made it just straight Marked By Power, then added the extra -1 refresh to boost intimidation more. I'm fine with reverting it, though.
--- Quote ---The Dance With Death is basically True Aim, but more so. This is bad.
--- End quote ---
How about making it -2, and only boosting each roll by 1 instead?
--- Quote ---The Power Of Love looks really weak.
--- End quote ---
This probably falls under the 'important in the books, probably won't come up in a game much' category again. In the books, turning the blade white is one of those legendary things that mean the difference between the sword turning you into a burnt out husk of a man (the mental attacks from killing stacking up over the years) and the wielder mastering the sword completely and being immune. I made it at -2 refresh partly to overcome the +1 rebate from Master Your Anger, so I guess if I'm nixing that rebate, that'd be a -1 power instead, and probably shouldn't need the fate point to overcome the restriction (which, in game, I envisioned being a big, dramatic turnover--like if you had to use the sword to stop someone you loved from ending the world, sort of thing).
Sanctaphrax:
I suggest making the sword's various narrative oddities into Aspects. Things like "does not cut allies" tend to make clumsy powers.
Given that the Sword is magic, deflecting bullets seems plausible.
I'd just replace the Dance With Death with True Aim if I were you.
Mr. Death:
Alright, I'll do a rewrite either later today or tomorrow. As for the Dance With Death, I'm a little more inclined to make it a +1 to defense if anything, since in the books that's how the main character was forced into it--he suddenly found himself having to defend actively instead of relying solely on the sword's ability to blow through any defenses to end fights quickly.
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