Author Topic: Direct Worldwalking Complexity?  (Read 2499 times)

Offline Tedronai

  • Posty McPostington
  • ***
  • Posts: 2343
  • Damane
    • View Profile
Re: Direct Worldwalking Complexity?
« Reply #15 on: July 14, 2013, 03:58:53 AM »
Or, to put it another way: If Spiderman exists in the DFrpg (which, according to Bob, for all intents and purposes he sort of does), then so does Nightcrawler (for all intents and purposes, sort of).
Even Chaotic Neutral individuals have to apologize sometimes. But at least we don't have to mean it.
Slough

Dr.FunLove

  • Guest
Re: Direct Worldwalking Complexity?
« Reply #16 on: July 14, 2013, 04:21:22 AM »
@Haru
I'm glad we're on the same page now. No need to argue! :)

I understand what you're saying. That's why I said you can always end up saying It's Magic! to justify well...pretty much anything. But if we were staying within the CURRENT context of  the Dresdenverse then teleportation that Hick was asking for (based on his examples as well) is a bit outside the scope of the 99% and the rules (
(click to show/hide)
).

Of course one can make changes to that in their game, but then we're talking about a change of context and mechanics.

@Tedronai
Great example. The RAW does allow for short range teleportation. It was the long distance thing that I think Hick was trying to model that seems to be shaky in the current canon/RAW.

@Hick/All
It is an interesting question though: how did those actors commit that action from your examples Hick. Spoiler time:
(click to show/hide)
Thoughts?

Offline Tedronai

  • Posty McPostington
  • ***
  • Posts: 2343
  • Damane
    • View Profile
Re: Direct Worldwalking Complexity?
« Reply #17 on: July 14, 2013, 10:28:49 AM »
@Tedronai
Great example. The RAW does allow for short range teleportation. It was the long distance thing that I think Hick was trying to model that seems to be shaky in the current canon/RAW.

You're right.  Those eponymous minor talents from the movie Jumper would probably have been a better example.  They, too, exist in the Dresdenverse (similarly sort of).
Even Chaotic Neutral individuals have to apologize sometimes. But at least we don't have to mean it.
Slough

Offline Haru

  • Posty McPostington
  • ***
  • Posts: 5520
  • Mentally unstable like a fox.
    • View Profile
Re: Direct Worldwalking Complexity?
« Reply #18 on: July 14, 2013, 03:24:03 PM »
So after feeding some sleep to my crankyness, I think I've got something that might work rather universal.

Take out whoever you want to teleport, then make the teleportation part of the taken out result. For best results, include a symbolic link for the destination.

So if you want to teleport yourself, that's at most a 5 shift spell to take you out. I would not make the symbolic link for the target count against the complexity, that's extra. And, of course, you'd have to account for wards, if you want to burst through them, otherwise you'll be stopped rather rudely when crashing into it. If you want to take more people with you, just make the spell a zone attack for +2, or cover multiple zones if you want to take that many people. Though those +2 should probably not come from "I concentrate real hard" type declarations, but more along the lines of "I take an hour to draw runes and markings on the ground to cover everyone with my spell.

Quote
@Hick/All
It is an interesting question though: how did those actors commit that action from your examples Hick. Spoiler time:
(click to show/hide)
Thoughts?
(click to show/hide)

“Do you not know that a man is not dead while his name is still spoken?”
― Terry Pratchett, Going Postal

Offline GryMor

  • Conversationalist
  • **
  • Posts: 224
    • View Profile
Re: Direct Worldwalking Complexity?
« Reply #19 on: July 14, 2013, 07:37:33 PM »
World-walking Fast Travel:
Complexity:  Starting Barrier + Ending Barrier + 1 per never never zone on the path + duration.

Rules of thumb: +5 zones for precise endpoints that don't already have established connections to the paths  +2 zones per descriptive aspect difference between starting and ending zones in the Real

For example, it's relatively easy to get from one healthy forest glade to another if there in no reason for them not to be on summer paths, you only care roughly where you come out and all you have to deal with is it being noon at one and midnight at the other. It's a bit more work to target a specific forest glade in central park.

Optional: 11 to temporarily acquire World Walker to greatly reduce the path length

The barrier for an endpoint in the Nevernever is 0.

Depending on your style of magic, this travel could be wind walking, shadow stepping, opening a thundergate or creating a new path. Duration is only needed if you are changing the never never to force a new path and want it to stick around. If you are forcing a new path, simulations of the target locations aspects are a good way to come up with tags to cover part of the spells complexity.

Example:
Enchanted Item: Shadowblade, a forked dagger with a complex basket hilt with inset ruby. When activated, the ruby emits substantial light, projecting a blade of shadow that may be used to briefly cut the local barrier or cut the distance between two locations in the nevernever. Complexity 10 Worldwlaking.

Offline Amelia Crane

  • Conversationalist
  • **
  • Posts: 998
  • Estranged Daughter of Darby Crane
    • View Profile
Re: Direct Worldwalking Complexity?
« Reply #20 on: July 15, 2013, 11:38:33 PM »
I don't generally think that direct teleportation should be allowed in the Dresden Files.  The reason I don't think so is that travel is an opportunity for complication.  Yes, the audience is told Indiana Jones is traveling by way of an overland map, but that doesn't prevent Indy from having a scene on a zeppelin (to complicate his flight in Germany) or on a plane over the Himalayas (and having to jump out on a life raft, and putting him in the right spot to have an adventure).  Teleporting everywhere just closes off the possibilities of adventure along the way.

That said, there wouldn't be a whole lot of point to having Harry and the gang run from the mortal authorities after the epic fight at [redacted].  It wouldn't be a challenge.  It wasn't supposed to be.  The climax has come and gone.  What's important is to have Harry get back to Chicago for his final scene with Murphy.  Jim Butcher could have had Harry describe a jaunt back through the Nevernever by the way they had come, but this was cooler.

That said, how I would go about creating a spell for a teleportation effect is to combine two effects.  First is tearing a hole to the Nevernever, but you open enough holes for the entire route.  Second is an Escape-potion-like effect that moves you a few zones.  Combine the two for around six shifts per leg of the trip, and a teleportation might take around 30 shifts.