Simple Magic Question, Shooting through walls Options

[Nerdynick]

Simple enough I suppose, but could you shoot a manabolt through a wall at a living target? What I've read says yes because 1. You have line of sight to their aura 2. You're dual natured, so you could cast at physical or astral things. 3. Manabolt is a mana spell, so it would ignore the intervening wall and hit the aura.

[Stormdrake]

I may be wrong on this but astral perception does not allow you to see through walls. You actually have to see them on the regular plain otherwise a mage could drop a spell on a tank crew who are sealed up.

[Nerdynick]

I was under the impression that the aura would shine through the astral shadow, but I too could be wrong. I'm sure there's something I'm missing, I just don't know what (or more importantly, where).

[Yerameyahu]

You definitely can't have LOS through a wall.

[Jaid]

You definitely can't have LOS through a wall.

agreed. but apart from that (ie if it was a regular window) you'd be able to nuke someone through that.

[Toloran]

agreed. but apart from that (ie if it was a regular window) you'd be able to nuke someone through that.

Not 100% correct. Some clarification: If you are in meat space, you can aim a spell through a window since you can see the target. If you are on the astral plane, windows are opaque and thus block LoS.

[Summerstorm]

Well, no you can not look through objects in the astral. Also you can also only affect magical active auras if you cast on the astral.

[DireRadiant]

Caster actively Astral -- Can affect other astrally active targets
Caster Perceiving astrally --> Can affect physical and astrally active targets
Caster not astrally active(Not perceiving nor projecting) -- > Can affect physical targets

Astral Perception is a psychic sense, not another form of sight. While astrally active auras are described as "glowing" or brighter, it is just in contrast to other things. Barrier are still barriers.

[Jaid]

Not 100% correct. Some clarification: If you are in meat space, you can aim a spell through a window since you can see the target. If you are on the astral plane, windows are opaque and thus block LoS.

dang. i keep getting my canon crossed. it was an earlier edition where the astral plane let you see through windows because they had that purpose on the physical plane so it extend out to the astral, wasn't it?

[Summerstorm]

dang. i keep getting my canon crossed. it was an earlier edition where the astral plane let you see through windows because they had that purpose on the physical plane so it extend out to the astral, wasn't it?

I thought it always was disputable. Was it ever clearly stated? Also: glass windows normaly get produced by soulless machines who intend nothing. Always unclear for me. I normaly let people look through it.

[Yerameyahu]

Sorry, I should have been more clear: you can't get LOS through a wall *or* window (astrally). (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[Nerdynick]

Very well, that answers my question quite well.

[Neraph]

Well, no you can not look through objects in the astral. Also you can also only affect magical active auras if you cast on the astral.

This is an important rule otherwise it breaks the game. A friend of mine that GMs made the mistake of not enforcing this rule the first few games, so in all later games it's his houserule. He routinely.... demolishes (to choose a kinder word) his team with astral mages. Sure, the players do it too, but when there's 1 PC mage against 3 NPC mages... Yeah.