sustaining a spell |
sustaining a spell |
Jun 28 2004, 10:30 PM
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#1
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Target Group: Members Posts: 9 Joined: 23-May 02 From: Indy-LTG - midwest-RTG Member No.: 2,762 |
How long can a mage sustain a spell?
I currently have a mage the holds invisibility with the levitate spell, spell locked. Then he just narco-jets security guards. any sugestions? |
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Jun 28 2004, 10:58 PM
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#2
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Beetle Eater Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 4,797 Joined: 3-June 02 From: Oblivion City Member No.: 2,826 |
As long as they remain awake and conscious. They will also maintain the target modifier for the duration. A Sustaining Focus can make the duration indefinite without target modifiers.
Spell Locks are second edition, I will assume you mean Sustaining Focus. Yes, tons of suggestions. Are you ready? This post has been edited by Kanada Ten: Jun 28 2004, 10:59 PM |
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Jun 28 2004, 11:00 PM
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#3
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Target Group: Members Posts: 9 Joined: 23-May 02 From: Indy-LTG - midwest-RTG Member No.: 2,762 |
Yep hit me.
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Jun 28 2004, 11:01 PM
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#4
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 577 Joined: 12-June 04 Member No.: 6,398 |
What kind of suggestions are you looking for?
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Jun 28 2004, 11:06 PM
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#5
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Beetle Eater Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 4,797 Joined: 3-June 02 From: Oblivion City Member No.: 2,826 |
1. Wards. When a ward is penetrated the creator[s] instantly know. Combined with Alarm ward, and your mage is most likely going to set off alarms quickly, without his or her knowledge.
2. Dual Natured guard animals. Far more common than one would think, automatically penetrates Invisibility. Combined with bio-monitors for the security guards and animals then the mage will paint a virtual target on himself and allow them to isolate him. 3. Totally automated security. No living creatures to affect. 4. Enemy mages, spirits, astral shallows, and so on. 5. A different type of objective, new challenges. This post has been edited by Kanada Ten: Jun 28 2004, 11:07 PM |
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Jun 28 2004, 11:07 PM
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#6
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Target Group: Members Posts: 9 Joined: 23-May 02 From: Indy-LTG - midwest-RTG Member No.: 2,762 |
Ways to get around his levetation/invisibility combo. He currently belives he is god's gift to runners because of the combo. I could always out mage him but I am looking for as many ways to take him down a peg as possible.
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Jun 28 2004, 11:08 PM
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#7
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 577 Joined: 12-June 04 Member No.: 6,398 |
Ah. I didn't realize you were speaking as a GM looking to challenge such a character.
Kanada Ten hit the big ones. #5 is my personal favorite. |
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Jun 28 2004, 11:11 PM
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#8
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Target Group: Members Posts: 9 Joined: 23-May 02 From: Indy-LTG - midwest-RTG Member No.: 2,762 |
Thanks Kanada Ten
Any other sugstions are welcome. I can't belive forgot about wards. *hangs head in shame* |
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Jun 28 2004, 11:17 PM
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#9
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Target Group: Members Posts: 9 Joined: 23-May 02 From: Indy-LTG - midwest-RTG Member No.: 2,762 |
I have been using #5, but I needed to get the point across to this character by showing him the combo was not perfect. (he would use it ANY chance he got) |
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Jun 28 2004, 11:32 PM
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#10
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Beetle Eater Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 4,797 Joined: 3-June 02 From: Oblivion City Member No.: 2,826 |
One of the things I think is really important is understanding that Corporate Security gets paid millions of dollars to invent counter technology.
These two spells are among the top employed by Shadowrunners. Simple ways to foil them? Doors that don't have maglocks but are simply activated by laser sensors. When they detect a person enter the field, they open the door. Invisible people do not trigger these sensors, thus the door does not open. Not only that, but the door opening triggers the camera. Pressure sensors activate the lights and cameras, so the floating invisible mage must use augmentation or go blind. Monowire meshes that retract when the the lights go on could make a deadly surprise, especially when combined with spells like Astral Static and Invisibility of their own - even Watchers on patrol in those corridors will keep the mage on the physical. A few well placed wards, and the facility requires at least a decker and some muscle when the drek hits the turbine. Personally, I really think Biomonitors are the most under used weapon against runners. Corporations must already outfit the guards with radios and armor, a small additional price per guard eliminates the need for paired guards. The entire complex can be monitored from a single point. Biomonitors actually make mundane dogs useful (they can smell invisible beings), even if left to roam. |
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Jun 28 2004, 11:48 PM
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#11
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Target Group: Members Posts: 9 Joined: 23-May 02 From: Indy-LTG - midwest-RTG Member No.: 2,762 |
Biomonitors on mundane dogs! Now that's the kind of inventive thinking I come here for. :D
That is prefect because he won't think of the dogs as a threat untill it's too late. And if he Narco jets the dog it will have already regesterd a spike in its heart rate when it smelled him. The monowire mesh I will save for a Knight Errant trick. Thanks again. Does biofiber light up if spell are active around it/ |
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Jun 29 2004, 05:45 AM
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#12
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Shooting Target Group: Members Posts: 1,685 Joined: 17-August 02 Member No.: 3,123 |
Actually the biomonitor is there to detect him getting knocked out! He might have just gotten a "spike" from smelling another dogs ass, which security will surely be uninterested in. When he gets knocked the fuck out they send a team. |
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Jun 29 2004, 02:37 PM
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#13
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Technomancer Group: Retired Admins Posts: 4,638 Joined: 2-October 02 From: Champaign, IL Member No.: 3,374 |
Would you also need a tracking signal so you know where the dog is knocked out or does the biomonitor provide that as well?
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Jun 29 2004, 03:19 PM
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#14
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 128 Joined: 26-February 02 From: Winston Salem, NC Member No.: 1,359 |
Adding a location transponder to a biomonitor should be child's play. And since the dog is in a known compound, you could even use multiple antenna mounts to simply triangulate the biomonitor signal without even modifying it.
And while Kanada Ten hit the most obvious, here are some other counters to invisible flying mages: (Continuing KT's numbers) 6. Ground Surveillance Radar, able to pick up things within 10 meters of the ground. 7. Ultrasound monitors, tied to current sonic map that will note changes and alert security, unless an appropriate biomonitor accompanies said disturbance. 8. (if it is inside) Air current doppler monitors, much like scaled down more sensitive weather radars today. You can't move through the air without disturbing it. Air flow dynamics can plotted and large enough variations can set off warnings that can then be assessed and turned into alarms if need be. 9. RF absorption. There are experimental systems today that look for the 'holes' in the cell phone radiation to see where something is blocking it or absorbing it. Designed to track stealth bombers, similar methodology could be brought into your game. The human body does absorb RF. If you doubt it, put yourself into a microwave oven. Any how, there are some ideas, and yes some of them would involve cutting edge technologies, so maybe the group has to bypass and then steal some of this. |
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Jun 29 2004, 05:09 PM
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#15
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Runner Group: Members Posts: 3,066 Joined: 5-February 03 Member No.: 4,017 |
Yes, you can spite the mage with the cutting edge, but it's always more fun to shatter him with something disturbingly mild (or just unexpected).
Guards with ultrasound vision can spot him (reasonably well) and fill the area with lead. It's not a very costly cyberware compared to some that are useful for guards, and a squad of 5 has a pretty good chance of at least scaring him while maybe getting a hit or two. Have a job against ghouls. Invis does exactly drek against astral perception, they don't have the +2 penalty, and they can use their terrain to get to him in whatever way they want. Attempt to steal something, but have the place pre-trashed as they arrive. A Wednigo on the loose. The other options listed do also work, plenty of options that will scare the other PCs and make that floating invisible mage completely impotent. |
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Jun 29 2004, 09:51 PM
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#16
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Beetle Eater Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 4,797 Joined: 3-June 02 From: Oblivion City Member No.: 2,826 |
Technically, Radar uses light and thus is a form of sight, as is RF (radio frequency). So both 6 and 9 are covered by invisibility. However, number eight, doppler radar, is very good and works well with MAD (magnetic anomaly).
Since the biomonitor will be broadcasting the data to a central location, it can act as a tracking signal as well. As can all the radios on the guards even without biomonitors.
I don't think so, not unless an active focus passes through it anyway. But the air will be displaced by an invisible form moving through it, meaning biofiber would still show a form passing through it provided the fiber was lit by UV. I suppose we should mention the counter to biomonitors, just to prevent player tears. If the team discovers or breaks the Encryption code, they can duplicate the biomonitors, monitor the security forces, feed false information to security central, and so on. To make penetration more difficult, the GM can use "One-Time Pads," thus forcing the team to infiltrate another layer of security first. And the battle continues. |
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Jun 30 2004, 12:17 AM
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#17
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Decker on the Threshold Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 2,922 Joined: 14-March 04 Member No.: 6,156 |
Well, technically thermosense and the like detect IR radiation, which is another form of light and thus sight, but Invisibility does not block IR radiation, so I presume it doesn't block radio frequencies either. |
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Jun 30 2004, 12:31 AM
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#18
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Beetle Eater Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 4,797 Joined: 3-June 02 From: Oblivion City Member No.: 2,826 |
Thermosense detects a rise in air tempature due to the radiation, not the actual radiation (which is still there but not directly seen). |
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Jun 30 2004, 01:58 AM
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#19
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,028 Joined: 9-November 02 From: The Republic of Vermont Member No.: 3,581 |
Invisibility, per the spell description, doesn't defeat "sight", however. It defeats "normal vision". In a world with dwarves and trolls, I'm willing to accept that "normal vision" includes IR, and even low-end UV (some insects can see into the UV), but I'm more than a bit dubious about the theory that it includes radar. |
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Jun 30 2004, 02:16 AM
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#20
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 458 Joined: 12-April 04 From: Lacey, Washington Member No.: 6,237 |
Change the environment. Put him in a place where you need to crawl or that has low ceilings and narrow hallways. Even guards that can't see him have a chance with blindfire.
Another option is to put him up against another invisibility user, but make certain that astral is NOT an option by filling the area with background count or living beings (in a jungle, or a greenhouse packed full like a jungle). He'll probably think he's at an advantage at first, because he'll know that astral perception won't work against him. Guards with implanted/datajack linked biomonitors can have autoinjectors that either give an antidote to narcojet or a stimpatch. The total cost (datajack and reusable autoinjector) should be under 2000 nuyen. They'll go down and get right back up again. Don't explain what the datajacks are for, make him find out the hard way :grinbig: (I love solutions that use a tiny amount of technology and yet totally frag the runners' day). Need an excuse: issue the guards a bunch of narcojet weapons. Now they don't have to worry about friendly fire! Guards who go down could always trigger a flashpak or even a non-cyber version of the Super Flash cyber eye system automatically, along with a loud personal siren. It's a cheap way to call for help and put your attacker off balance. Tear gas. That Fiber Optic System that lets mages cast spells from inide a remote area. Does it allow them to use astral perception through the link? Well, a one way mirror (made of ballistic glass) will do just as well. Then see above. All pretty low tech, low cost and essence friendly. Go ahead and throw 'em out there like candy whenever you feel like this character is doing a little too well. |
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Jun 30 2004, 05:33 AM
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#21
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Grand Master of Run-Fu Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 6,840 Joined: 26-February 02 From: Tir Tairngire Member No.: 178 |
And then there's the classic Watcher Attack pack strategy. Someone with active spells is going to be lit up on the astral. The watchers notice him, and call in a bigger spirit to attack his activated foci. Now, win or lose, the mage will know that a spirit is monkeying with his foci, so he'll probably go astral to see what's up. When that happens, the watchers gang-bang him. 1 Force-4 Spirit plus 6 force-2 watchers plus Friends in Melee = Big owchie.
He can escape the watcher damage quite easily, by going pure physical and shutting off his foci. The spirit now has to materialize in order to hurt him, and that means everyone else can deal with it as well. |
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Jun 30 2004, 09:38 AM
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#22
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Immortal Elf Group: Members Posts: 11,410 Joined: 1-October 03 From: Pittsburgh Member No.: 5,670 |
assuming, of course, that he survives that first round of astral attacks.
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Jun 30 2004, 10:04 AM
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#23
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 515 Joined: 10-April 04 From: Chicago, IL...Ich vermisse Deutschland. Member No.: 6,230 |
Dual natured paracritters are also nice. Barghests, Hell Hounds, Cocatrices, and others are common watch paracritters. Heck, I remember the old Corp Sec Handbook also recommending Geese as normal watch critters. The most mundane magical security (pun intended) should also have a field day with this guys, just using spirits as already mentioned. Nature Spirits would also take him down, plus be a tad more effective in dealing with the entire group.
I can also see a lot of guards jumping to a wrong conclusion in that they might think there's an astral intruder rather than a physical one. He'd displace like an astral intruder, which might make his life a bit harder. And getting caught in a netgun might really ruin his day. Paracritters that aren't dual natured might also pick him up, using smell. Don |
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Jun 30 2004, 01:27 PM
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#24
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 693 Joined: 26-March 03 Member No.: 4,335 |
While it's tempting to go for dual-natured or magical security, I suggest a cheaper alternative.
1) Invisible people have to open doors too. 2) After hours, cameras will record all use of doors unless security is bypassed first. 3) Back in the security office, they will see the effects of mister invisible. Easy, inexpensive, mundane ways to detect invisible intruders: First, for the normal (mana) invisibility: 1) Sensors and remote viewers will see him just fine. 2) Scanway floroscopic security arches. - like that security station in Total Recall. For Improved (physical) invisibility: 1) Deep shag carpeting. 2) Beaded curtains 3) Ultrasound motion detectors 4) Big dogs. Give mobile security troops a HUD letting them know where intruders are. |
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Jun 30 2004, 11:09 PM
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#25
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 458 Joined: 12-April 04 From: Lacey, Washington Member No.: 6,237 |
Deep shag carpeting. Beaded curtains. . . . What's next? Bell bottomed uniforms? I can just picture this place :grinbig:
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