Centering Options

[Joker9125]

I read in the fourms that centering can either lower you TN or add dice. What is the limit of how much it can lower TN or add dice? and on the lowering TN side will it lower your TN for drain to?

[Ol' Scratch]

I suggest just snagging Magic in the Shadows and reading up on all the details yourself. The above is a really dumbed-down description of how Centering works, and explaining it here is going to be confusing without all the details, not to mention treading on copyright infringement. (It's okay to give a paragraph or two, but you're basically asking for an entire rules section.)

[Joker9125]

My gm took all the books with him when he went to IL on break and since I am in TN (Thats at least a 5 hr drive prolly more) and my attempts to contact him have failed I am forced to rely on the knowledge of people like yourself. All I an reall looking for is a number and yes or no Example ( centering can lower your TN by a max of 4 or add dice by a max of 4) (Yes centering can lower yout TN for drain or No it cannot lower your TN for drain)

[Ol' Scratch]

In that case, it's limited by your Active and Artistic Skill levels.

[Joker9125]

ohh so lets say i have a centering skill of six and a ti Ch skill of six i could lower my Tn by six?

[Rattler]

No. How much your TN gets reduced depends on how well you do on the test, just like everything else in SR. There are no freebies. The only limiting factor is how much dice you roll.

[Lilt]

Note that it can't genuinely lower your TN, it only removes penalties (such as wound penalties, visibility penalties, and the penalty caused by sustaining additional spells)

If someone has a willpower of 6 your TN to mannabolt them would be 6 and no amount of centering can lower it below 6. (although it may lower it *down* to 6 from 8-9 if you were on a +2-3 from a wound or something)

Basically the mechanic, called Centering Against Penalties is as follows:
Calculate the spell's TN (Base TN + Penalties)
Subtract Initiate Grade (BaseTN + Penalties - Grade)
Roll (Centering skill)d6
Pair the dice off that rolled above the TN with subtracted initiate grade
For each pair, you can subtract 1 from the spells TN (but you can't go below the Base TN for the spell)

Hope that helps. It probably won't.

[Bearclaw]

where'd that part about subtracting initiate grade come from?

[Bearclaw]

I read it. Nevermind :twirl:

[mfb]

yeah. i missed that little tidbit during my whole first and second initiatory grades.

[Joker9125]

so it wouldnt be usefull for my character to use it for conjuring spirits I.E. lowering the traget number of a force 6 spirit to 3

[Fortune]

As was said, you can only use it to eliminate penalties, not lower the original TN itself. If you were Conjuring a Force 6 Spirit while Moderately Wounded, you could use Centering to reduce your +2 TN penalty from the wound, making your TN 6 instead of the 8 that it would otherwise be in that situation.

[Joker9125]

what about adding dice? Couldi useit to add dice to the act of conjuring

[mfb]

yes. in that case, Centering acts as a complimentary skill.

[Joker9125]

Heres another question is centering worth it.

[mfb]

it's one of the out-and-out most useful metamagics one can acquire. but beyond that, not so much.

[toturi]

Lowering TNs is generally good. Therein lies Centering's uber-usefulness.

[Joker9125]

if it cannot lower the target numbers below the base then it is of no use to me I.E. a force 6 spirit with a TN of 3

[Ol' Scratch]

Spoken like a true newbie. :)

[mfb]

indeed. even if it can't lower the TN to summon that spirit, it can help offset the drain from summoning it.

[Cain]

There's absolutely no reason why any awakened charater shouldn't learn Centering. It is, without a doubt, the single most versatile and useful metamagic. In the hands of any sorceror or conjuror, it's powerful; in the hands of an adept or physmage, it's damn scary-- it amounts to a complimentary skill for almost anything they want it for.

[Joker9125]

Ic so i could center before conjuring and offset the drain for it beforehand so i would have more die for summoning

[toturi]

Versatile and useful, yes. BUT you get access to the actual centering skill as opposed to the artistic-linked skill only after you initiate and you take Centering as a metamagic tech. Pumping your actual centering skill takes some work.

[mfb]

well, sorta.

[toturi]