Alternate idea about hexing

[devonapple]

I've been thinking about this too, but it would have to rely on wireless power sources - otherwise, the power cables would be crossing the circle, would they not?

Wireless keyboards and mouse devices are already a possibility. A wireless monitor is possibly an option.

[BumblingBear]

I've been thinking about this too, but it would have to rely on wireless power sources - otherwise, the power cables would be crossing the circle, would they not?

Wireless keyboards and mouse devices are already a possibility. A wireless monitor is possibly an option.

What about a "line" of circles between the computer and the caster to "block" magic?

That would allow the power cord behind it.  The circle may allow electricity through as well.. we don't know enough about it.

Man, I wish we had a WOJ about this.

[Richard_Chilton]

Jim has said a bit on hexing, how it wasn't always there.  That at one time wizards made milk curl and did the other traditional signs of "there's someone with magic power nearby" but now the sign of a wizard being nearby is the tech stops working.

It sounds as if a law of nature is in play here - so I doubt there is an easy workaround.

Richard

[BumblingBear]

Jim has said a bit on hexing, how it wasn't always there.  That at one time wizards made milk curl and did the other traditional signs of "there's someone with magic power nearby" but now the sign of a wizard being nearby is the tech stops working.

It sounds as if a law of nature is in play here - so I doubt there is an easy workaround.

Richard

Maybe it hexes the highest tech of the time.

Like... maybe that now we have electrical cars and hybrids, gasoline autos are unaffected?

::shrug::

I guess it's a GM discretion sort of thing.

[sinker]

There is an easy way to do the wizard proof computer (although you still have issues with peripherals). Water cooled.

[devonapple]

Water cooled.

I was looking for the actual rules on water's capacity to disrupt magic. It's in the fiction, but there are instances where water doesn't seem to impact anything. Any leads?

[sinker]

Running water can be used in a couple of different ways. It can be a threshold (as stated on YS230) or it could be a scene aspect that could be invoked or compelled (like in the example on YS116).

[devonapple]

Running water can be used in a couple of different ways. It can be a threshold (as stated on YS230) or it could be a scene aspect that could be invoked or compelled (like in the example on YS116).

Thank you! I'm wondering in particular about the ocean.

[BumblingBear]

Thank you! I'm wondering in particular about the ocean.

What about a wizard who has a special tech room that has aquarium walls or an aquarium floor?

You could have a shark aquarium under the floor of a rich wizard's tech room like Vector's house from Despicable Me.

[devonapple]

If you are willing to set up an area that drains all magical potential, I can see a computer working there. The hope is to have the Spellcaster able to have their computer *and* their Shield spells when the Ghouls come a-knocking.

I was wondering more about the Ocean as a Threshold. Say somebody manages to put a Ward on their yacht. Should such a Ward be considered "legal" according to the rules (assuming that the original caster had a Sponsored Magic that would not automatically make water a liability)?

If so, would swamping the boat effectively weaken or disable the Ward? How does one determine the Threshold Strength of a given water feature?

[Peteman]

But I do not recall her denying using them though.

Yeah, but if she doesn't state that she uses them, and she states that she reads about them in response to a reaction of "how can you use them without frying them", I think the default assumption here is that she doesn't have any practical experience with them.

Also the game mentions in her writeup that "Computers-the theory of, at least-are her hobby.

In a game I'm playing in, my character is a stated technomancer. She is very good at hex wards, and she has designed a magic laptop (It's described as a two-way voodoo doll to a very delicately woven thaumaturgical link to a computer. She uses the Sight to place the magic in such a way as to not fry the circuitry and layers in a hex buffer to direct hex effects away from the hardware). It's quite complex.

[Tallyrand]

Maybe it hexes the highest tech of the time.

Like... maybe that now we have electrical cars and hybrids, gasoline autos are unaffected?

::shrug::

I guess it's a GM discretion sort of thing.

No, that doesn't gel.  In one of the stories (sorry, can't remember which) he mentions that older record players are generally ok but even that didn't seem a definate.  Record players are already 4+ generations back dependent on how you figure that sort of thing.

[Sitrein]

I'll start with the Luccio thing. She states clearly that she reads about computers when questioned about her hobby. To take her not specifying that she only reads as proof that she does more, would be entirely illogical. There's no sensible reason to assume that because she didn't specifically say otherwise when implying otherwise, that she uses computers. She's not a fey dancing around words. She's a human with no reason to hide her ability from Dresden, especially in the context given by the book.

As for the wizard ability to use computers through the water room. To properly fully drown out all magical ability with water, every case given in the book has the wizard IN the RUNNING water. Still water doesn't really do much of anything if anything and just being around the running water only hampers magical ability - it doesn't stop it.

So, to fully protect the computer you'd have to have the wizard in running water while using it (comfortable, no?). The peripherals would need to be waterproof for that reason and then all of these costly and annoying measures should allow the wizard to check his or her facebook for a while until the pumps that keep the water flowing over the wizard eventually give out. At that point you hope the wizard has implemented many redundancies.

As for magical Faraday Cages,

(click to show/hide)

One was shown in Turn Coat and it pointed out that more like a surge protector, it only works once. After the one hit, it's gone.

Then again, we have Mac's which uses many random occurances of the number 13 to put up a magical umbrella. That would probably be enough to throw off SOME of the magical energies but hell, if I recall correctly, Mac won't even use light bulbs because of the massive expense. This leads me to believe that nothing short of massive amounts of complex anti-magical redundancies paired with a lot of expensive technological redundancies for those occasions when things just fail (because that happens even without magical need. Come on, it's computers) would be pretty much the only way to allow a wizard to use a computer reliably.

Just for the record, this would all leave the wizard more or less magically naked. Weak. Defenseless. Sure, you might be able to put together a work-around but bare in mind that all these work-arounds and redundancies take up time and money as well as, in all likelihood, some enchanted item slots and the like. At what price Technology?

[toturi]

I'll start with the Luccio thing. She states clearly that she reads about computers when questioned about her hobby. To take her not specifying that she only reads as proof that she does more, would be entirely illogical. There's no sensible reason to assume that because she didn't specifically say otherwise when implying otherwise, that she uses computers. She's not a fey dancing around words. She's a human with no reason to hide her ability from Dresden, especially in the context given by the book.

But taking her stating that she reads about computers as only reading about them would be just as, if not more, illogical.

How does one go to medical school nowadays to keep up with the latest medical developements without coming into contact with state of the art (comparatively with respect to the age of the wizard) technological medical equipment? I would start by looking into this with regards to hexing first.

[UmbraLux]

It's also worth pointing out that Faraday cages aren't cheap.  It takes more than just a layer of tinfoil to get the dB drop needed for RF testing.  It's also not portable.  A magical equivalent might be possible, but it would be like Little Chicago...time consuming, expensive, breakable, and not at all portable.