[X] My Assistant

[longbowrocks]

So what? The flare comp glasses have to cover his eyes, otherwise they'd be fairly useless. Which means our mage is watching his target through an electronic device, which means he can't cast on it, just like he can't cast via a CCTV feed.

Agreed. Mages don't use sight to determine the coordinates of their target and cast at those coordinates. They use sight to form a magical link with the target, and cast their spell through that.

At least for direct combat spells. If it's indirect, I feel he can fudge it by looking at the character through anything he wants and saying, "I cast in that direction".

[sabs]

That completely doesn't jibe with the description of how Indirect Spells work.
Even AREA effect indirect spells require you to be able to see the center of the area you want to effect. You have to form a mystic link. It's not a bullet that goes in a straight line from where you are pointing.

[Tymeaus Jalynsfe...]

Agreed. Mages don't use sight to determine the coordinates of their target and cast at those coordinates. They use sight to form a magical link with the target, and cast their spell through that.

At least for direct combat spells. If it's indirect, I feel he can fudge it by looking at the character through anything he wants and saying, "I cast in that direction".

To Each his own I guess... The books never say HOW that link is created, you are making an assumption, at best. They use "Line of Sight" because it is a common term that everyone is familiar with. What they DO say is that you cannot TARGET with Augmented Sight unless it is paid for with/by Essence. However, you are not using the Flare Compensation to Target a spell. It is not a Mode of Sight, as it were, like Thermographic or Lowlight.

Anyways... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[longbowrocks]

I guess. I forgot that indirect spells travel along the mystic link like a guideline.

As for flare comp. Tymaeus has a point, I guess it isn't really an electronic feed, so no problem.

[longbowrocks]

Mystic Link Theory
Both sight and Assensing can be used by the Caster to establish the "Mystic Link", at which point the magical energies are released by the Caster and effect the Target. Physical and Mana spells and powers represent the different ways in which the magical energy is released.

You can't target just an aura, unless you're ritual spellcasting apparently (I hate rituals so much).
"auras alone cannot be
targeted" SR4A 183

[sabs]

You can only target an aura in a ritual if you have something that creates a link.

Some blood, some skin, his favorite teddy bear, etc.

[longbowrocks]

You can only target an aura in a ritual if you have something that creates a link.

Some blood, some skin, his favorite teddy bear, etc.

I was talking about spotters. Just basic core book spotters.

"The spotter must be present in
the lodge when the ritual begins, and then must travel physically or
astrally to where she can assense the target of the spell. The target does
not have to be astrally active (and it’s often safer for the spotter if she
isn’t); the spotter must just be able to assense him."SR4A 185

[sabs]

Gah.. I forgot that part. That's so unfair. You can ritually cast mana bolt on some guy who isn't even awakened? That's a frightening level of assassination.

[longbowrocks]

Motion for mage to be synonymous with dick?

Motion sustained.

We have set a precedent.

[Sephiroth]

No. You can never assense with any of your normal senses. Astral Perception is an additional psychic sense. Even permanently dual-natured critters cannot do that, even though they perceive both planes simultaneously. Assensing always uses that other sense.

He said assess, not assense.

[longbowrocks]

He said assess, not assense.

I didn't notice that.

[Sephiroth]

I didn't notice that.

Can't access your link, I'm afraid. My OS believes that dA is infected with the Conficker virus or something similar. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nyahnyah.gif)

[sabs]

I am fairly sure that i is supposed to be a u (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[longbowrocks]

Can't access your link, I'm afraid. My OS believes that dA is infected with the Conficker virus or something similar. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nyahnyah.gif)

It was just my favorite picture of Robert Muldoon from Jurassic Park saying "Clever Girl".

[KCKitsune]

Motion for mage to be synonymous with dick?

OBJECTION!!! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/grinbig.gif)

Mages are no more dicks than a Street Sammy with MBW 2 (which you can get at Chargen). Yes that mage might be able to get him, but with Genewipe you can't get a good enough ritual link to the Sammy... Good luck trying to kill him when he can shoot back... with MUCH bigger guns.

[Whipstitch]

I've yet to meet a shadowrunning team that I couldn't kill or at least maim with a good rigger team. The really hard part is getting the possession mage to sit still long enough to hit him with a truck.

[longbowrocks]

I've yet to meet a shadowrunning team that I couldn't kill or at least maim with a good rigger team.

I'm building one right now, but for some reason hackers don't provoke the same emotions in me that awakened characters do. Probably because a mage is born with his power, you can't learn it. A rigger, on the other hand, practiced. Any one killed by the rigger just didn't invest enough time in their profession of choice, or were unlucky, or just played stupidly. There's no genetic barrier like: the rigger won because he's an Aryan.

The really hard part is getting the possession mage to sit still long enough to hit him with a truck.

HAHAHAAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAAHA!

Mages are no more dicks than a Street Sammy with MBW 2 (which you can get at Chargen).

MBW 2?

Yes that mage might be able to get him, but with Genewipe you can't get a good enough ritual link to the Sammy...

Genewipe doesn't make pictures or used coffee mugs disintegrate. Also, I don't know whether it works against preservation spells. I'd like to argue that the rules for genewipe say your genes decompose within 5 minutes irrevocably. Then again, that's just speeding up a process that would be completely prevented by the spell. Opinions?

Good luck trying to kill him when he can shoot back... with MUCH bigger guns.

I hate it when Yerameyahu says this, but he's got a point: the mage can shoot you with the same guns you use to shoot him. He's not spending that nuYen anywhere else.
Also, a starting mage can overcast his spells to get a higher DV than any handheld weapon in the entire game. He then proceeds to get stronger.

[Nath]

Also, I don't know whether it works against preservation spells. I'd like to argue that the rules for genewipe say your genes decompose within 5 minutes irrevocably. Then again, that's just speeding up a process that would be completely prevented by the spell. Opinions?

The description of the Preserve spell says "The material’s rate of decomposition is reduced by a factor equal to the number of hits scored; 4 hits would preserve a substance for 4 times as long as it would normally last."

In this context, I would understand "normally" as "when no spell is cast" and not "when no spell is cast and no genetic treatment is applied". Just one opinion though.

[longbowrocks]

So, 20 minutes for 4 hits then? Odd, I thought there was a spell that completely halted aging of substances. Just goes to show that it's true magic is more powerful when no one understands it.

[Glyph]

The book does not say what the victim can or can't do when he is not carrying out an order.If he could operate freely, the spell would be totally useless as everyone would either cry mindrape or call for backup possibly even with a description or videofeed who the caster was

Re-reading it, control actions is the only one that explicitly says this ("when not directly controlled, the victim may act as normal"). I guess that's why control thoughts has Drain 2 points higher.

[Brazilian_Shinob...]

MBW 2?

Move-by-Wire 2.

[James McMurray]

Re-reading it, control actions is the only one that explicitly says this ("when not directly controlled, the victim may act as normal"). I guess that's why control thoughts has Drain 2 points higher.

That and the -Willpower penalty they have when controlling your actions to do stuff you don't want to do.

[Yerameyahu]

(Whoops, wrong thread.)

[DireRadiant]

You can't target just an aura, unless you're ritual spellcasting apparently (I hate rituals so much).
"auras alone cannot be
targeted" SR4A 183

I would like to know where I mentioned an aura.

[Yerameyahu]

Don't mind him, he's learning. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

That phrase is referring to the fact that you can't target physical objects from the astral, longbowrocks. That is, auras are visible on the astral plane, but they're not 'present'… so they can't be targeted. I know I already told you this in the other thread.