Search Fu re: Drain is failing me Options

[pbangarth]

I am embarrassed to ask.

I cannot find in the manuals where one is told what the minimum value for spellcasting/summoning Drain is.

Could someone point me to the relevant text? Thx.

[Lionesque]

Which edition?

[pbangarth]

SR4. I guess the little post icon is not that obvious.

[Lionesque]

Old man forgot to wear his glasses, sorry. But SR4A has a section about Drain (p. 178):

The base Drain Value for Spellcasting is listed in the spell’s description (p. 203). For Summoning and Binding spirits, the Drain Value is twice the number of hits (not net hits) generated by the spirit during the Opposed Test.
Each hit on the Drain Resistance Test reduces the Drain Value by one. Any remaining Drain is suffered by the magician. Drain is usually Stun damage... (etc.)

Maybe that answers your question?

[pbangarth]

Yeah, but there doesn't appear to be any explicit minimum Drain for Spellcasting, as there is for Summoning, and as is stated in SR3.

The GM has laid down the fiat: minimum Drain of 2. I can live with it.

[bannockburn]

Note that no Drain Value can ever be less than 1.

[pbangarth]

Huh. Obvious. That's why I didn't see it.

But what is the point of a Drain Value of 1 ... except maybe to allow for a glitch? Or to allow reducing big damage (eg. DV 9 goes to 3 with a pool of 6 dice).

[bannockburn]

I don't follow.
The minimum drain value of 1 just determines that you can't got to 0 and don't have to roll ever, like when casting a spell with DV force / 2 -1. It can't go to 0 and instead stays at 1, if you cast that spell at force 2.

[pbangarth]

I don't follow.
The minimum drain value of 1 just determines that you can't got to 0 and don't have to roll ever, like when casting a spell with DV force / 2 -1. It can't go to 0 and instead stays at 1, if you cast that spell at force 2.

No die can roll below 1, so a Drain value of 1 means all dice are hits. But, if you roll over half of the dice at 1s, it would still be a glitch. And if you roll 6 dice against a Drain Value of 9, then you still take 3 points of damage.

[bannockburn]

You're talking about SR4, only 5+ are hits. Or 4+ with a certain supplement, if you pay a lot of Karma for that.

The DV is only the potential amount of drain damage you can take. You still have to roll your pool, and if no dice show 5+, you take 1 (usually stun) damage.