Playing an Effective Shaman, Are there any pointers on this? Options

[Cryptkeeper]

Is it possible to say how to play an effective shaman if so how?
or if not explain why.
:)
Thanks

[Sphynx]

Of course, as a matter of fact, magic-types are the most effective creatures you can play. They have a completely unlimited potential for power.

My personal preference (as people here know) is to play a shamanic type who concentrates on sustained spells and Quickening. Spellcasting becomes a less sure success as you start facing more powerful adversaries, so I personally rarely even cast spells at targets, relying on my magical enhancement via spells. I cast Armour and ImpInvis pretty regularly, but never combat spells, I rely on my Ares Predator for my 'combat' magic.

But that's just personal taste, not the 'way to do things right'. Great thing about Magic is that you're almost always rolling more dice than the opposition is rolling to resist. So spells succeed easily if you keep the Force of the spell as high (or higher) than the TN to cast the spell.

Sphynx

[Cryptkeeper]

Ok.


Hows this for priorities?


A: Full Magician
B: 400,000 :nuyen:
C: Elf
D: Attributes 21
E: Skills 27


For an elven raven shaman?

and where should i put my stats ideally?

:) Thanks

[Synner]

And now for the non-crunchy approach:

Chose a Totem that actually fits with the shadowrunner lifestyle rather than just a coolness factor. Also make sure its one you feel comfortable roleplaying the mindset. If you're a newb shaman player, go for an Urban Totem like Cat and Dog.

Remember that in character a shaman's magic is based on a certain worldview and that that belief affects not only his mystical side but his day-to-day outlook. If you roleplay a Rat Shaman to the hilt, sooner or later you're going to have integration problems with the rest of your team.

Shamans and mages are rare and they know it, finding one with the right set of skills to run the shadows is rarer yet. Use that for both negotiation and intimidation purposes. Only 1 in 1000 people have trained Talent.

Find a magic group or build your own as soon as you can. This is the type of friend that keeps on giving. They're useful contacts, research aides, initiatory help and plot foci all in one.

Use some of your starting cash "to make" some friends in the same field. Rarely will other characters be able to point you in the direction of a friendly talismonger or a fellow shaman to patch you up. Plus it makes it easier when you're looking for a specific piece of magical gear or an essential focus.

A shaman's relationship with spirits is uniquely different from a mages. This isn't simply because you can call one up in an Action! Shamans deal with spirits with a respect that many mages don't bother with. It helps that the vast majority of Nature spirits (especially Urban ones) have a lot more personality than most Elementals and it is left unsaid that disrepecting one can literally come back to haunt you later. Use this uniqueness to increase your mystique and impress your teammates (as well as the spirits).

Learn to use Nature Spirit powers like other magicians use spells. They can be just as effective and versatile.

[Sphynx]

Why resources 2nd? What are you planning on buying that you couldn't buy with resources of 20k?

As for 21 attribute points, mine would look like this:

Str:2 Bod:5 Will:6 Int: 5 Qui:3 Cha:3

Personally though, I'd go with a dwarf for more points, but that would, by most definitions, be 'munchkin' though I honestly prefer playing the dwarf. ;)

Dwarf: Str:3 Bod:5 Will:6 Int:6 Qui:5 Cha:3 (Total of +4 more attributes than an Elf)

Sphynx

[Cryptkeeper]

*groans*

i want to be a city elf shaman that dresses well and in all intents and purposes is beautiful for npc's to look at.

also what are my recomended priorities?

thanks :)

[mfb]

the aspect of shamans i find the most interesting and useful is their spirits. they have their drawbacks, of course--you can only have one active at a time, they only last 12 hours--but a judicious shamanic conjuror can be his team's strongest asset. whereas elementals are largely relegated to being simple thugs, spirits have a wide array of powers that can often be more useful than another (Force)M punch or flamethrower. my favorites are confusion, conceal, and search--conceal is especially handy because it works on both the physical and the astral.

[Namergon]

Definitely it will be Cat, rather than Raven. IMO, that is.

[Nephyte]

I personally recommend using a system that allows more flexibility in character creation.

Sum to 10 isn't bad... I like point buy the best though some people feel the magic character suffers under this system.



30: Full Magic
5: 90K :nuyen:
10: Elf
56: Attributes (28)
24: Skills


Attributes:

Bod: 4
Str: 3
Int: 6
Quick: 4
Will: 6
Cha: 8

I'd probably take Cat as my totem too ... though that can be bad sometimes for a Runner, it fits the concept.


[edit] Changed post to more reflect what I thought was the characters needs...

[Sphynx]

That makes a huge difference my friend. Attributes 2nd is a MUST then. Forget about resources since you can easily buy trinkets and spell points in-game later. I'd switch the places of your attributes and resources and leave the rest as-is. Get that charisma up to 8 and make sure you have a WP of 6 then split the rest up. Comes out to 4 per attribute if you do an average after taking out the 8 and 6 for Cha and Wil. Maybe reduce Str by a point to raise Int.

Sphynx

[Cryptkeeper]

how about this then?


body: 3
quickness: 4
stength: 3
charisma: 8
intelligence: 6
willpower: 6

elf

full magician

20,000 nuyen

skills 27


and sphynx would you see a cat shaman thats social cuase i thought they where supposed to be loners.

anyone with thoughts feel free! :)

[Sphynx]

I suggest you wait til you know what spells you want to pick a totem. But I'ma munchkin. :P

Sphynx

[Cryptkeeper]

illusion, city spirits defensive.

[BigKnockers]

[Lilt]

Those attributes look great, charisma 8 will come in especially handy when summoning spirits. If you want to be a bit more munchkin, decide what you're ever going to use your strength for (how much would you ever want to carry? Do you ever hit people or do you just spell them?) and take strength down to 2, putting up either quickness or body.

IMHO a cat would make a good social character. They may be 'loners' but that also translates into self-confidence which is a good social characteristic. They have good hygene and are obsessively presentable, which would probably make any corp mook take an instant liking to her. The totem itself dosen't have the best modifiers but I think they can be worked as a shadowrunner.

[edit] I also Highly recommend sticking with full mage. If you want to be a mage/face then you will probably have a good charisma as it is and spirits are a extremely useful when employed correctly.[/edit

[Cryptkeeper]

ok, that kinda defeats the purpose you obvoisly didnt read the whole thread. and anyone out there is cat any good for what i'm doing or is it making my character unsocial

[Lilt]

Not quite. Cats draw attention to themselves due to the great personal (animal :) ) magnetism that they posess. They are loners, but that's only because there is noone quite like them. They're never the type to follow someone else blindly so they're more likely to end-up as leaders than followers. Not to mention predatory instincts and subtlety which are good for removing social rivals.

I think that cat would make a great social totem if played right.

[Sphynx]

Personally, I'd go Spider, but that's just because it's "cool", it's not so much for an easy totem.

As for Cat, you can be a social loner. Not wanting to hang out with all those people attracted to you is fine, as is not wanting to be best friends with the people who have to negotiate with.

Sphynx

[Synner]

[Sphynx]

And that's different from Cat, how? A mask doesn't have to look like the personification of the totem, a spider shaman might appear to be weaving a delicate web of astral energy or perhaps causes a weblike background. Doesn't have to me a multi-faceted eyes, pincer mouth type of look.

Regardless, casting spells in a social situation is never good, especially Illusion (though a nice Manip, Influence spell might be nice). Personally though, if I were trying to make a socialite, I'd not follow a path of Illusion. Manip spells of Influence, Makeover, Mob Mood, Fashion, Alter Temperature are better options than Confusion and Trid Phantasm IMHO.

Sphynx

[Lilt]

For cat: light magic could make the character's voice sound purr-like, moderate magic would make her seem to move more slinkily, serious magic may make her eyes look like cat eyes, and deadly magic may make her look like a cat-wouman. Obviously it depends on what your GM says your mask manifests as but IMHO Light should be relatively innocuous, moderate should give you a clue if you know what you're looking for, Serious should be a clue to anyone paying attention, and deadly should be relatively obvious. At-least that's how I play it in my game.

[edit]these are just some ramblings... Nothing relevant[/edit]

[Drain Brain]

I am very much of the opinion that ALL totems should be house ruled on a game by game basis.

Since Shamanic magic is all intuitive and interpretive, I would think that different Shamen see their totem and relate to it differently. For instance, I have many cats - some are aloof, stand-off-ish and downright hostile. Others are cute cuddly bundles of love. I would assosciate myself with Cat in the latter way, being a cat person. Cat Shaman X, who lives down the road however, well she might be a real pain!

The same goes for all the totems - think of all the different aspects and rework them to suit. Say the Sun totem. In the UK druidic form, it's a bringer of light and life, but to a nomadic desert tribe it might be a cruel tormentor.

Have a think, talk with your GM. You could use any totem you want - Prairie Dogs, Wolves, Dogs, Geese - all are social animals in some respects. You just have to make sure that your Shaman views them that way. You could also try things like Pegasus?

[Siege]

Playing a shaman is just a matter of applying Totem traits to the character's personality.

And just a little wierd -- animal magnetism is a wonderful thing.

-Siege

[Bearclaw]

[Velocity]