Newbies ask the darnest things

[Taran]

Modifying is based on the base skill.

So if a stunt boosts a skill high enough to compliment, it wouldn't count because the stunt just affects your total bonus to your roll and not your actual skill.

It's a bit of a bad example because drive never compliments guns it only ever restricts. But using that example:

If your drive is 3 and your guns is 4.

Let's say you have a stunt that boosts drive to 4, your drive is still effectively 3 for the purposes of modifying, therefore, you'd still suffer the -1 penalty to guns.

Any stunts you have to guns get tacked on after you've modified the skill.

[Saracen]

Right. Thanks. 

[violant]

Can you still use a supplemental action to move zones when there's a border?

[Mr. Death]

No. When there's a border, you have to roll to overcome it and that becomes your main action for the turn.

[Sanctaphrax]

I let people go over borders supplementally if they could do so on a roll of -4. That's rare, but it's not unheard of.

[dragoonbuster]

I allow characters with Speed to overcome borders with supplemental actions. That leads to:
-Inhuman Speed means you take a full -1 on the roll to beat a Border: 1 and move into the next zone
-Supernatural Speed lets you move a zone and beat a Border: 1 for free or Border: 2 for a -1 on the roll.
-Mythic Speed lets you move a zone and beat a Border: 2 for free or Border: 3 for a -1 on the roll.


Sanctaphrax's rule is a good one too.

[Saracen]

Against what do you roll when making a First Impression? Is it the target's Empathy? A set difficulty? Something else?

[GamingInSeattle]

Against what do you roll when making a First Impression? Is it the target's Empathy? A set difficulty? Something else?

I think it depends.  If you are making a First Impression against someone who is not anticipating it or at least not hostile to meeting you, I would use the NPCs relevant skill number as base target.  It also depends on what kind of first impression you are making.

Example:

First impression roll vs a powerful politician may be vs her Presence if you are trying to impress her with your character.
First impression roll vs a celebrity may be vs his Resources if you are trying to impress him with your knowledge of fine art or the latest fashion trends.
First impressions roll vs a scientists may be vs her Scholarship to impress her with your appreciation of science.

First impression rolls vs a NPC's Empathy is certainly appropriate in more general settings or where there is no specific area of knowledge the PC is targeting.

Now if the NPC has been given a heads up that either the PC or someone else is going to try to influence her, I would have it be a contested action.  This is due to the NPC being aware that someone is going to try to influence her in some way and thus can be working actively against such influences. 

Make sense?

~ GiS

[GamingInSeattle]

Hey all,

I think this may have come up earlier, but I'm drawing a blank (both in the books and on the forum).

Question: Can you immediately spend a Fate Point received due to Aspects being invoked against you in the same exchange.

Example:

John has no Fate Points and is fighting Alexis who has 10.  Alexis has the higher initiative.
In a previous exchange Alexis had performed a manuever and placed the Aspect: "Tangled Feet" on John.  She later tagged the Aspect for a +2 bonus to her attack.
Now, Alexis spends a Fate Point to invoke the "Tangled Feet" Aspect on John.  She hands a Fate Point to the GM, the GM hands it to John's player.
Alexis rolls Fists to attack John and gets a total of 2.  She adds +2 due to the Fate Point spent.  Her total Fists attack is now 4.
John rolls his Athletics to get out of the way.  He gets a total of 3.
If John has an Aspect to Invoke, such as "Can't hit me", can he spend the Fate Point he just received to get a +2 to his Athletics to a total of 5, thus dodging Alexis Fist attack completely? 
If he can, doesn't that mean the Fate Point he spent goes to the GM then to Alexis and if she can justify Invoking an Aspect of hers, she can add an additional +2 to her roll?
Does this just go back and forth till someone runs out of Aspects to apply in this one exchange?

Thanks,

GiS

[Taran]

From what I remember, you receive the FP at the end of the exchange.  So, no, you can't use it immediately.

I'll see if I can find the page...

YS pg. 106

Later in the game, Biff is talking to
someone in a bar who’s been spying on him,
and he knows from a previous assessment that
the guy has a Bad Temper aspect. He decides
to invoke the guy’s aspect with his Intimidation
roll to get the guy to lose his cool and slip up.
Because that invocation creates a disadvantage
for the spy, the GM gives that character a fate
point at the end of the scene, to save for a future
meeting.

End of scene for Out of Combat situations.

[Sanctaphrax]

Of course, that rarely actually happens since most people don't want to give Fate Points to their enemies. It's generally better to invoke scene Aspects or your own Aspects if you can, and you usually can.

[Saracen]

Make sense?

Yep. Thanks.

[McNulty]

In the rulebooks words “faith,” “holy,” are related to some supernatural monsters (and their catches). For example:

Demons: “Lastly, they are vulnerable to exorcism (magical and faith-based), the power of faith, and holy objects.” (OW35)
The Fallen: “almost certainly vulnerable to faith magic.” (OW55)
Ghosts: “Faith magic works best when simply fighting ghosts…” (OW57)
Ghouls: “Affected by holy water.” (OW58)
Vampires: “True faith and holy objects can burn vampires.” (OW84)

But when it comes to rules mechanics, there's not much to go on. I'm specially interested how faith-based exorcism would work (priest with true faith vs. demon inside human body). Other examples of faith-based interactions vs. monsters are also welcome.

[Haru]

Can you say "Holy pickup truck of St. Green"?
http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,28668.msg1235810.html#msg1235810
The beast wasn't vulnerable to holy stuff, but it was worth the effort.

Basically, a true believer should be able to bless things, giving them the aspect "holy", at least for a while. Usually, those blessed things will be holy water or various symbols of faith, but depending on the believer, the range of objects might encompass all kinds of things. Including a pickup truck.

Depending on your campaign, the blessing might have to be more thorough, not just holy water, but holy water from St. Paul's Cathedral blessed during the Easter Sermon or something along those lines. But your garden variety monster should be vulnerable to your garden variety blessing. If it seems too powerful (like blessing the rain!), you could ask the player to spend a fate point for it.

Then, of course, there are things that will always be holy. The swords, for example. A believer might have imbued an ordinary weapon with the power of his faith, simply by using it a lot, and every attack with that weapon could be seen as satisfying the catch of "holy". Or the character has prepared things. Silver bullets cast from the materials of a blessed cross. A cross or even a bible verse carved into a bullet, doused in holy water and blessed by a priest.

Then there's the "holy" power. A martial arts true believer can be quite dangerous. I've also seen a power somewhere that allows a true believer to extend his holy power to the melee weapon he is carrying.

Exorcism example:
http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,28668.msg1921623.html#msg1921623

[Taran]

I think Faith is a lot more broad than Holy. 

Putting a line of salt across the threshold of your bedroom to keep away evil spirits isn't Holy in the traditional, Christian sense but truly believing in  the Lore might imbue that threshold with Power. 

Harry's silver pentacle is another example.

Faith covers all forms of belief.  With enough conviction, you can gain power over a supernatural being that has a weakness to it.

The right aspect and/or conviction maneuver might be all you need to hold an evil creature at bay or injure it or drive it away.