Charm City [OOC] Options

[pbangarth]

Hmmm. I guess to be seen, one has to be seen to be rich.

Fuck it. He goes for it. He didn't embarrass himself in the back hall, so let it happen out here.

[sunnyside]

I was just struck by how very different things are going from how I imagined this to go when I was writing the plot. But that's the fun of having players. Otherwise I could just have tried writing a novel.

[pbangarth]

So, for the team and the GM, that particular Enthralling Performance roll is on the better side of average. The hits would be added to any perception roll a listener would make while enthralled. Team members will have to be sure to know Bongo is doing it, (Be warned?) so they don't get mesmerized, too.

Imagine having to sneak past a guard whose target number to see you is 8 higher.

[sunnyside]

Well, in terms of not being warned this time, if Selina went straight for the third floor after the last song she would be up there before Rose managed to get off the stage and to Bongo.

[pbangarth]

I assume a Perception Test to notice any resistant ones is the GM's purview.

[sunnyside]

I'm inclined to say that it isn't so easy to tell if enthralling performance has worked on someone or not. I'm not reading it like a spell attack that is resisted and stuns people, though that might have made more sense. Rather it seems to apply its perception effect to everybody that can view Bongo and perceive the performance. However if they were heading to the bar, they might keep going or generally go about their business. It does mention folks getting snapped out of it though.

This also partly helps with stealth. Bongo can play and affect perception without everyone turning into zombies which might well alert anybody watching the cameras or expecting guards to check in.

[Thanee]

(OOC: Huh, you really had the specialization).

You mean (Dance)? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Bye
Thanee

[sunnyside]

You mean (Dance)? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Bye
Thanee

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

Unfortunately I don't think the aura reading specialization is going to work out so well in this case. I'll specifically refer to the quote "Astral forms are more colorful and brighter than auras" to indicate that they are different things. The reflection of physical things in the astral are auras, but wards are a purely astral construct. So that and the background count would knock Selina down to three dice.

Perhaps assensing for unchanging things would be something that could be repeated, barring glitches, and Fiona can "fly" around to try and carefully peek to find the extent of the ward, but Selina would have to stall to give time for all that.

[Thanee]

Yeah, it does not help with general, astral perception, just with that Assensing test to gain information about someone/something. That is specifially for Auras, as mentioned in the text on p. 191 SR4A (second paragraph under Astral Perception).

Astral Forms should still have Auras as well, which is what you interprete when assensing them. It is a bit more detailed in Street Magic p. 112, though still not entirely clear. Either way, it would be pretty weird, if you could not assense an Astral Form or, more specifically, an Astral Form's Aura. There should be an Aura either way. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

She is just looking for obvious stuff here, anything active in astral space, like actual Astral Forms (i.e. patrolling spirits), which are like bright lights in a shadowy mass and easy to see (i.e. no roll required (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) ).

Bye
Thanee

[pbangarth]

On my sheet here I have his CHA as 1 + 5. I'll check the arithmetic and figure out which one is a typo.

[Thanee]

For Selina, being led to the otherwise inviting doors by Mike, the only issue would be if she had any active spells or items (OOC: As I understand it fashion isn't magical after the required turns of sustaining, and I don't think fetishes have an issue, so I think she's Ok).

Selina has nothing active (except at the moment the Astral Perception, of course, which she will drop before heading in). She can just go through.

I thought, we were through the door and ward, already... now I also get this part here! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

... but Selina would have to stall to give time for all that.

Bye
Thanee

[sunnyside]

I thought, we were through the door and ward, already... now I also get this part here! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Yeah, I thought she might have a wardrobe malfunction going through the ward, and wasn't sure she didn't have something else active. I think we have that sorted.

You could roll for Fiona if you like, otherwise Ican just do it later today.

[pbangarth]

The 1+4 = 6 on Bongo's stats was a typo. I fixed it. In order to reach the 357 karma points for Attributes, his CHA has to be 6.

[Thanee]

You could roll for Fiona if you like, otherwise Ican just do it later today.

Fiona rolled 3 hits (assuming there is BGC 1 still), this will be opposed by 2x Force of the Barrier.

Fiona needs 1 net hit to make it through, otherwise she cannot pass the Barrier.

Bye
Thanee

[Thanee]

So, this is where our Heroics compulsions are going to kick in... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Bye
Thanee

[pbangarth]

So, this is where our Heroics compulsions are going to kick in... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Bye
Thanee

Yup. 'Cause one of us just had to go up where the underage girls are being exploited. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[pbangarth]

You do realize, Koekepan, that "Mr. Snake" is gonna stick? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/rotfl.gif)

[Koekepan]

That's what they call him on the porno circuit, too.

[sunnyside]

So, this is where our Heroics compulsions are going to kick in... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Bye
Thanee

A solution isn't clear enough to require a compulsion roll. You have to operate around a fair bit of dystopian stuff you can't necessarily resolve.


But yeah.

I like how Deadlands handles these sorts of things. Instead of characters trying to work around disadvantages, they get rewards, sort of like getting karma, when they lean into them in story appropriate ways. So it's more like that in these cases.

[pbangarth]

Yeah, sometimes business has to come first. Bongo's gotta pay himself back for that table somehow.

[sunnyside]

I'm still here. I'm just wary of doing many posts before Thanee.

If you don't want to engage, Selina could just be uncomfortable, confirm nobody involved in the photo seems to be there, and Mike could take her away. You have a woman to focus on, you could choose to come back to this later.

[Thanee]

Sorry! Work is just very busy at the moment. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

I will check in later today!

Bye
Thanee

[Thanee]

If you don't want to engage, Selina could just be uncomfortable, confirm nobody involved in the photo seems to be there, and Mike could take her away. You have a woman to focus on, you could choose to come back to this later.

Right now, this isn't really helping us, yeah.

Bye
Thanee

[sunnyside]

So I had to look up the details of drinking Absinth since it came up, but I hadn't done it that way myself. I got curious enough to get a bottle and absinth spoon.

I have to say I'm a fan! Give it a try if you like cocktails at all.

[Thanee]

With no actual magical security around, Fiona could maybe use her Influence power on one of the managers (the one that was not arguing for turning the third floor into a regular area), to nudge him into that direction as well. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

She just needs a shadowy area to materialize without people noticing, but that shouldn't be too hard to find here. And afterwards, she should probably remove the traces of magic-use in the astral, before heading back out again.

INFLUENCE
Type: M • Action: Complex • Range: LOS • Duration: Instant
The Influence power allows a being to insinuate suggestions into
a target’s mind, predisposing that person to some form of action, reaction,
or emotion. Make an Opposed Test between the being’s Magic +
Charisma and the target’s Willpower. If successful, the target will carry
out the suggestion. If confronted with the wrongness of the suggestion,
the subject can make a Willpower Test to overcome it as described
under Mental Manipulations, p. 210.

The BGC will hurt a bit, but with Edge that could still work decently.

Bye
Thanee