Payment for services rendered

[Hogeyhead]

So I entered into a pact with a fire spirit. I've crafted (had crafted) a manequin made to be super durable, cast spells on it etc so that the spirit can inhabit it a la bob's skull and move around with it. Now his job is more or less to be my ever disposable bodyguard, as if the mannequin is ever destroyed I can always replace it, and he can just escape into the nevernever (that's sort of the deal). The manequin has two stress boxes, and a mild and moderate consequences, and three armor, so it's durable, but not invincible. However the spirit has combat stats at 5, so when blocking incoming attacks, he's good (well technically he's superb).

In any case that gives you a concept of services rendered. This is sort of an ongoing gig. Once a year however I need to take a torch and take it around the world a la the Olympics. It has to be 'known' to have happened, who knows it not specified. Now I could take the long way around, our down times are usually 3ish months at a time, however I have other stuff to do. So I wanted to solve this via thalmaturgy, maybe giving myself mythic speed for a certain durration, and then trying to cross the Atlantic by just running really really fast before sunset. In general we have decided that if you want magic to give you a power you can do it, it just costs double the cost of the power in shifts, and the more powerful a power the more restrictions will come up. We haven't really discussed how this will get done and considering it is nine months away from the deadline I'm not pressed for time. However I'd like to have a plan sooner rather than later.

Ideas?

[Gaelicwolf]

Do your character have to remain on earth the entire time he is running? Or could you essentially circle the earth popping out are spots around the globe via the Ways of Faerie? If you can just use the Ways, it might make the whole endeavor much easier.

[Hogeyhead]

I think not, I think I asked and the answer was no. The effort is I believe a big part of the payment. Spells are otherwise fine however.

[Cadd]

There is of course a way to fulfill the demanded lap around the world in a tricksy way. Unless a lattitude is specified, you could travel to  one of the poles, light the torch, and walk a circle around the pole. There is fundamentally no difference between completing a circuit (sp?) around the 89th parallell or the 5th parallell. Of course, the entity you struck the deal with might be...annoyed...to have been fooled.

As to your mechanical question, I don't think I'd allow any speed power on its own to let you run over a large body of water, let alone an ocean. With something else granting you the ability to actually traverse the distance, a speed power will absolutely cut down on time. 

[Hogeyhead]

The pole thing definitely wouldn't fly with the spirit, and it's not good to have a bodyguard that feels you cheated it.

As for the speed power, oh yeah definitely no way that I could get by with just a speed power, there would be a big potency for... other stuff... what I don't know. Maybe an athletics replacement? You see this question is by and large the point of the thread.

Guys look I don't need help getting around the problem, I need to do it the hard way. I need help getting through the problem.

[Cadd]

Basically, if you're doing a "skill replacement" ritual, you don't need to give yourself a speed power - you just establish how hard the end result is. Basically, how many shifts to travel around the world.

If you want to go with a ritual granting powers, it's rather a questions of what powers would you need in addition to the speed. I'd probably say Wings (levitation, flying Superman-style, whatever) and Recovery of some stripe (for the "Fatigue isn't an issue" function, as you'll still take a while), and then "just" add duration.

[PirateJack]

There are a few means I can think of, some more realistic than others.

The easiest way would be to get a plane ticket, complete with plane that will allow a lit torch on it, and then fly around the world.

Alternately, give yourself the Wings power and Mythic Speed. There may be a slight problem with violating sovereign airspace this way, though.

Another idea, with only a slight chance of losing a head, would be to use chronomancy to slow down time and then just do it normally.

You could give yourself the ability to run tirelessly and without injury, then run it. It'd take about 41 days of non-stop running to make it around the equator at 25 mph, though that doesn't answer the ocean problem.

[Hogeyhead]

There are a few means I can think of, some more realistic than others.

The easiest way would be to get a plane ticket, complete with plane that will allow a lit torch on it, and then fly around the world.

Alternately, give yourself the Wings power and Mythic Speed. There may be a slight problem with violating sovereign airspace this way, though.

Another idea, with only a slight chance of losing a head, would be to use chronomancy to slow down time and then just do it normally.

You could give yourself the ability to run tirelessly and without injury, then run it. It'd take about 41 days of non-stop running to make it around the equator at 25 mph, though that doesn't answer the ocean problem.

You expect a mage with a conviction of 5 to take a plane all the way around the word and somehow not die? I don't really have the scholarship for any polymorph. Chronomancy could work.

[Second Aristh]

Who says you have to run?  Make friends with Pegasus.

[dragoonbuster]

I'm going to skip my criticism of PCs 'owning' NPCs with stress tracks and whatnot, and just ask...why is this something you're worried about RPing?

Either you succeed, and continue as normal, or you fail for some reason and you lose the fire spirit. I would either turn this into a Simple or Extended Contest, probably rolling Lore, or I would forget it altogether and just say that, normally, he goes through the process just fine. I mean, you said this occurs outside of campaign events, right?

If something interesting would happen to keep him from finishing, like getting into a fight or something important comes up at home, solve that with compels and such. I would completely forget trying to stat out the whole process when there's little real point to it.

[Hogeyhead]

That's a fair point. However part of what I'm asking is what is really possible in this case with thalmaturgy. Is x within reasonable bounds what can I fluff it as? As for the npc thing, well as you kept it brief, so shall I. That's just kind of how we do things, and it works very well for the most part. Also they take a back seat. Also we don't control them directly.

[AgentSchneider]

As dragoonbuster said this would probably be more succinctly solved by doing this through an Extended Contest or via a Compel to tie into the story - another entity trying to take the spirit, coming across an evil organization during your travels, etc. You should probably hash out the specifics of the trip as well: does it have to completed by a specific time of the year and/or does it have to be completed within a certain timeline of the trip being started?

If you want the process to be really crunchy though, for the granting Powers via Thaumaturgy I think it mostly comes down to the group as to what is allowed. If you're going straight by the book you would have to look at the ritual for the spell needing a minimum of 6 shifts for the Mythic Speed refresh, increased shifts for duration (probably starting at A Few Minutes or 15 minutes) and then moving up, PLUS adding on shifts to bypass physical consequences. While I wouldn't rule out giving yourself Mythic Speed via Thaumaturgy, I would think that in order to push your body to those unnatural limits you would need to take at least a Moderate, maybe even a Severe consequence to do so - which ties back into the idea of Compels anyways once the story resumes later on.

Honestly if you're looking for a Thaumaturgic short-cut I'd think that just making a flying carpet would be significantly easier than trying to boost yourself up with Mythic Speed or Wings, especially since I assume your wizard doesn't have great (or Good or even Fair) Athletics. And if you were able to craft a super durable disposable body guard for your fire spirit to inhabit I don't see why your wizard would have a problem with a magical flying carpet.

[Theogony_IX]

Tranformation spells are actually a bit more complicated according to the Paranet Papers.  The equation looks like this:

3 shift for an aspect to represent the changes
plus shifts for duration starting at 15 minutes
plus 2 times the refresh cost of the powers
and accepting or inflicting consequences equal to 2 times the refresh cost of the powers

For example

Mythic Speed [-6] and Wings [-1] for one month.

3 + 9 + (2 x 7) = 26 shifts and both an extreme and a severe consequence.

That's not something I would do as a wizard.  Flying carpet seems like a much better option, but your wizard's skills would need to lean that direction before I'd allow it.  Flying without falling to your death is incredibly complex (as described in the books), let alone flying fast.  So there is that, then you'd need to take into account the wear and tear of the wind on your body as you fly, and then you'd also need to find a way to keep the fire from being blown out.  A canopy of some kind could solve that though.

To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure I would allow a spell that complex from a person at submerged or lower power level though.  Are you sure a clause that allows the use of Ways through the Nevernever couldn't be added.

[Hogeyhead]

Well considering I'm a bit of an enchanter (5 lore for item potency) and all my specializations happen to be in air I think I could make the magic carpet ride fly... so to speak. I think I'll go in that direction. The only problem being that my GM might decide that because nobody ever did it in the books that it's not really possible without wings of some kind. However I feel that this has a high chance of success. I could also bring my apprentice along. He must learn! The downtime before last was spent having him taught English. Took a couple of months to get functional (like not first language fluent, but still). Last downtime was dedicated mostly to one monster of a presence roll to teach. 24. He learned some stuff. A flying carpet seems like it will be a good object lesson.

[Second Aristh]

Well considering I'm a bit of an enchanter (5 lore for item potency) and all my specializations happen to be in air I think I could make the magic carpet ride fly... so to speak. I think I'll go in that direction. The only problem being that my GM might decide that because nobody ever did it in the books that it's not really possible without wings of some kind. However I feel that this has a high chance of success. I could also bring my apprentice along. He must learn! The downtime before last was spent having him taught English. Took a couple of months to get functional (like not first language fluent, but still). Last downtime was dedicated mostly to one monster of a presence roll to teach. 24. He learned some stuff. A flying carpet seems like it will be a good object lesson.

Rashid has one in CD.