Behind the Crown [OoC], Out-of-Character information for Behind the Crown Options

[pbangarth]

Yup, you get him as a contact. Level 1, of course - just biz.

Gracias, señor.

[pbangarth]

Could we have an accurate count of the number of little snakey thingies? I believe we get 1000 nuyen each, minus the 1000 nuyen for waking the metabiologist up. Then Karmakaze gets 3/4 of the net.

[pbangarth]

Hmmm.

Looks like my IC post #763 (about not yet finished the thing with Billy's niece) neglects to take into account what Blue said to Billy in my IC post #625 (about it being too big a job for Blue at the moment).

So, aside from Mitsuhama still hunting him, Blue is available to join in with whatever just came across Karmakaze's plate.



Once they get some sleep.

[pbangarth]

So, given that we seem to have tied up a couple of loose ends, and Koekepan is feeding us the start of another thread, and assuming that Mitsuhama will ease up its hunt of Blue in a day or so (yes, yes, an assumption only), in the last few days I’ve had a chance to think about how to spend some of that nice karma and cash Blue has accumulated.

Players get that way, don’t they?

And I’ve hit a kind of dilemma. I’m hoping, Bastard, you can weigh in on some of my ruminations here. Oh, yeah, Koekepan, your thoughts are welcome, too.

For most of my SR gaming experience, I’ve lived by the rule, “he who shoots first lives.” Koekepan, my PC Quick Willie is an example of that philosophy in action. When I created Blue (Connor at the start), I purposefully avoided making him fast, as that didn’t make sense for the situation in which he started the campaign. Thinking things through, taking care in creating the fun innovations that Biozu developed, all that needed careful attention, not speed.

But that encounter in the diner opened Blue’s eyes to the harsh reality of life on the street. If it hadn’t been for Karmakaze’s quick actions, Blue might now be securely in the embrace of Mitsuhama. Or dead. He was truly frightened.

(Aside: Blue needs to remember to let Karmakaze know how grateful he is.)

There is a way to speed Blue up dramatically, within the budget he has available. Assuming he can get his hands on a Force 1 sustaining focus, and a Force 1 spell Increase Reflexes +3, he could get himself to be almost as fast as Karmakaze. Now, F1 is legal, but Blue may still have to purchase these things through the black market. In that case, the street index would apply. The two together would then cost on the order of 32,000 nuyen (give or take a couple of negotiation rolls).

I understand the dangers inherent in using F1 things, but, again, shooting first tends to get rid of/weaken the things that can hurt one’s toys. Even without the F1 sustaining focus, being fast with a +2 target modifier is still attractive. This possibility has been running around in Blue’s(my) mind for a while now.

However, buying on the black market would drain Blue’s credstick almost dry. (This is less of a problem if Blue can get away with buying without street index, but Koekepan isn’t that kind, is he?) Which means he would not be able to replenish some of those cool one-off spells he used up with such abandon. Of course, when I built Connor, I didn’t think through the cost of replenishing them when I made them all F6. The materials for even one cost 3600 nuyen! Not a problem at character creation.

Or, he would not be able to buy other new spells that might expand the capabilities he could offer the team. I’m looking at you, Control Thoughts spell.

So, I’m at a decision point, figuring out whether to get faster, or more flexible. I would appreciate some advice.

[Bastard]

Yes, I need to add my money and karma to my character from the start.

I say get Faster.

[Koekepan]

To offer a counterpoint: partnerships work best when they are complementary.

Karmakaze is already fast.

Magicians can't cast spells faster with magic - there's still a cap on that ability.

What will go-fast-magic get you for that cost, that you don't have already?

[pbangarth]

To offer a counterpoint: partnerships work best when they are complementary.

Karmakaze is already fast.

Exactly part of my quandary.

Magicians can't cast spells faster with magic - there's still a cap on that ability.

What will go-fast-magic get you for that cost, that you don't have already?

I'm talking about Initiative. Knocking out the opposing mage before she knocks out Karmakaze. Knocking out the street sam before he drills holes in Blue. Redirecting the onrushing truck before it runs over the both of us.

I have for decades tried to have my PC be one of the fastest in the room. Blue is giving me the option to do something different. "Wiz of all trades" kind of thing. I have to say his Wilpower of 12 has exceeded my expectations. The guy can cast spells all night long and likely never get Drained. And in the Astral, he has the BOD of a troll. That's another direction I could take him. Make him an astral warrior. There's also the chance to be able to support Karmakaze. Make her more resistant to magic so she won't be taken out early. Make her/Blue able to fly. He can already give the ability to breath water! Cool shit like that.

The trick here is to figure out what Blue wants, not what I want. In that regard, I do believe he would have been frightened by the encounter in the diner. And yet he also has seen the benefits of being different from Karmakaze.

No need to decide yet.

[pbangarth]

If my IC post advances things faster than you wanted, let me know Koekepan or Bastard, and I'll take more care next time.

[pbangarth]

Physical Barrier spell:

The book says the caster can create a wall with certain dimensions. Can the wall be oriented so that it becomes, say, a bridge over a gap on which bridge a character could walk? Rooftop to rooftop kind of thing.

[pbangarth]

Koekepan:

One can summon a number of Watcher spirits at the same time. Is this true for shamans as well as hermetic mages?

Are Watchers summoned by shamans free of the domain restrictions of Nature Spirits?

Watchers can be made to last weeks rather than hours by spending some combination of Karma and ritual materials. Will any ritual materials do (ie. the cheapest: Illusion), and do the ritual materials have to match in Force the Force of the Watcher spirit?

[pbangarth]

The response comes fairly soon:

"""Get some sleep, and we can catch up this afternoon. 4PM at the Kafkart outside the West Olive precinct, I'll fill you in. It's investigation, but politically tricky."""

Would that be the precinct on 8th between Lenora and Virginia?

[Koekepan]

Physical Barrier:

I think so. It's a barrier that prevents you from falling to the ground where you go squish. Of course, you'd better be maintaining it ...

Watchers:

Yup, watchers are available in bulk orders.

The rituals materials would have to match in Force, and have to be appropriate to a summoning, i.e. 1,000ny/point of Force.

Watchers are enabled or constrained by the nature of the summoner, and that includes domain limitations.

Precinct: Downtown, Olive and 5th.

[pbangarth]

Watchers are enabled or constrained by the nature of the summoner, and that includes domain limitations.

So, whether the lifespan is an hour or a week, If Blue leaves the domain, the Watcher spirit goes 'poof', right?

[pbangarth]

I don't seem to have an address or at least an intersection for Blue's apartment in Brainlaser, other than it is somewhere around Ballard. Can you give me a better sense of where it is, Koekepan?

[pbangarth]

This is what happens, Koekepan, when you leave me time to think about things other than the immediate dangers threatening Blue. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Is there a way for Blue to specifically summon a spirit that he has summoned before? In his domicile, Sweez is likely to come because he is the Hearth Spirit of that place. But, out in the city, would it be possible for Blue to summon, say, Acidsalt Dieselsmog (once it has recovered from the 'shock' as it were). I'm tending towards thinking of Blue as someone who wants to engender relationships with spirits, if he can.

This leads to a further question, one you probably want to think about (or maybe set up a few runs for information?). Under certain circumstances, spirits can become Free if the summoner dies or goes unconscious during the summoning. Spirits of Man for example seem to be predisposed to go Free. But, could there be a way for summoner and spirit to cooperate in order to help a spirit who wants to do so to go free? Obviously this would not guarantee a friendly relationship, but it could lead to one... especially if the summoner offered Karma for the spirit to build Spirit Energy.

Other questions swirl in the back of my mind. Stay tuned!

[Koekepan]

Watchers: yes, if Blue leaves a domain the watcher evaporates.

The smart way to handle this is to select overlapping domain areas in ways that give him some flexibility.

Address: it's a little south of Ballard, on the way there from downtown. It's near where 15th turns into Elliott.

To Blue, spirits reflect places in the same way that a stag or an eagle would have a home range. Calling one spirit away to another spirit's range would be rude.

Spiritual liberation is not hard from Blue's end - turning a spirit loose from its bonds is the easy part. Having staying power? You'd have no idea how.

[pbangarth]

Thanks, Koekepan. This is helpful.

\So, that would be near Kinnear Park. Is that park forested. Looking to place domains and such.

[Koekepan]

"Forested" is a big word.

There are a couple of trees, and some grass.

It's more like meadow domain.

[pbangarth]

OK.

[Bastard]

Sorry for another bout of delays. I am in the middle of a long stretch, but hopefully this weekend I will be able to catch up.

Still need to update my character. One thing if I haven't mentioned, is I am overspent on edges to flaws. Can I use my karma to pay off the debt?

[Koekepan]

I'll take it; that's fair.

[pbangarth]

I really do need to keep track of this for myself. I'll try to do better.

Does Blue have his one point of Good Karma available right now?

[Koekepan]

Yup, hot and ready to go.

[pbangarth]

Once on the way to the meet, Blue will summon a spirit to cover us as we drive. I'll wait to see if Karmakaze wants a spruce-up before we set out. Drain may affect Blue's choice of Force. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/frown.gif)

[Bastard]

How much money did we get total? I cant find my hand-written notes. Got money for Big J, got money from Pet Personal, and for the snakes, right?