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pbangarth
QUOTE (Sephiroth @ Oct 5 2010, 12:56 PM) *
You could have your teammates throw you through as a sentient rubber frisbee or something, I suppose...
I like it!!
darthmord
QUOTE (Dumori @ Oct 5 2010, 01:01 PM) *
LOL free sprites can always fly at there speed form interdependent. It's magic you see. Also though tbh a better thing to do would e just to go astral and bypass it that way. As it would be quicker thna invers tostering your self as well to change from you need to go astara then rematrialize. so you might was well go astral move and emtrailiaze on the other side.


The only issue with going astral to avoid an obstacle is that any gear you have won't transit with you.

But yeah, a FSPC has some... interesting things going for it.
Raven the Trickster
I'm liking it, with Breynir around my infiltration specialist ends up with a -10 to opponents visual perception tests to notice him and -6 for all other senses (Concealment power at force 6 and chameleon suit). There aren't that many guards that will have 11+ dice for a visual perception test, although 7+ for an auditory one is more likely.
pbangarth
With the Mutable Form Power, the Free Spirit can take the form of just about anything, and in conjunction with Realistic form be believable and workable (with limitations). If a Free Spirit can mimic a toaster, with elements that heat up made of one material, case made of another, rubber feet, etc. it seems that she could also appear dressed any way that she wants, with a silk dress or a cotton skirt with pumps.

So, how about for that really special affair, she appears with the latest Zoé Heritage Line outfit, and matching diamond and emerald jewelry? Real diamonds and emeralds, that pass the snooty, careful inspection of the elite. I don't see any problem with this. Does anyone else?

A complication might arise if some thief tries to lift the jewelry. What then? does she take damage as part of her is removed? Can she just de-materialize and take all her distributed parts back into the astral with her?
Neraph
QUOTE (pbangarth @ Oct 14 2010, 11:53 AM) *
With the Mutable Form Power, the Free Spirit can take the form of just about anything, and in conjunction with Realistic form be believable and workable (with limitations). If a Free Spirit can mimic a toaster, with elements that heat up made of one material, case made of another, rubber feet, etc. it seems that she could also appear dressed any way that she wants, with a silk dress or a cotton skirt with pumps.

So, how about for that really special affair, she appears with the latest Zoé Heritage Line outfit, and matching diamond and emerald jewelry? Real diamonds and emeralds, that pass the snooty, careful inspection of the elite. I don't see any problem with this. Does anyone else?

A complication might arise if some thief tries to lift the jewelry. What then? does she take damage as part of her is removed? Can she just de-materialize and take all her distributed parts back into the astral with her?

No problem, and the pieces can't be removed. Try casually removing your teeth.
darthmord
QUOTE (pbangarth @ Oct 14 2010, 11:53 AM) *
With the Mutable Form Power, the Free Spirit can take the form of just about anything, and in conjunction with Realistic form be believable and workable (with limitations). If a Free Spirit can mimic a toaster, with elements that heat up made of one material, case made of another, rubber feet, etc. it seems that she could also appear dressed any way that she wants, with a silk dress or a cotton skirt with pumps.

So, how about for that really special affair, she appears with the latest Zoé Heritage Line outfit, and matching diamond and emerald jewelry? Real diamonds and emeralds, that pass the snooty, careful inspection of the elite. I don't see any problem with this. Does anyone else?

A complication might arise if some thief tries to lift the jewelry. What then? does she take damage as part of her is removed? Can she just de-materialize and take all her distributed parts back into the astral with her?


The jewelery thief would have a problem trying to steal her jewels. She'd just shift back to astral and poof, nothing to steal. It's hard to pin down a FSPC. They have significant mobility capabilities.

Alternatively, just let the thief take them and the following combat turn, the stolen jewels vanish and re-appear on her. Now if the FSPC has the Wealth power, then you could actually create those jewels instead of making them part of your form.
pbangarth
QUOTE (darthmord @ Oct 15 2010, 11:17 AM) *
The jewelery thief would have a problem trying to steal her jewels. She'd just shift back to astral and poof, nothing to steal. It's hard to pin down a FSPC. They have significant mobility capabilities.

Alternatively, just let the thief take them and the following combat turn, the stolen jewels vanish and re-appear on her. Now if the FSPC has the Wealth power, then you could actually create those jewels instead of making them part of your form.
Shifting to astral could be a problem in certain, public circumstances. But I guess later on she could do it. And I'm trying to get my head around the possibility of damage to the Free Spirit if the jewelry is removable and is removed. And how far away could that part of her be and still be 'recalled'?

Unfortunately, Free Spirit PCs don't have the Wealth Power. Well, fortunately for role playing, because otherwise they would have no need for the payoffs of running.
darthmord
QUOTE (pbangarth @ Oct 15 2010, 02:03 PM) *
Shifting to astral could be a problem in certain, public circumstances. But I guess later on she could do it. And I'm trying to get my head around the possibility of damage to the Free Spirit if the jewelry is removable and is removed. And how far away could that part of her be and still be 'recalled'?

Unfortunately, Free Spirit PCs don't have the Wealth Power. Well, fortunately for role playing, because otherwise they would have no need for the payoffs of running.


In such a case, I would GM it as being within (Force) inches of the body before vanishing & re-appearing.

I could have sworn I saw them have that power as an option. Ah well.

Wealth does have a major drawback either way. Any wealth you create with that power has the astral signature of the entity creating it. So giving away tons of magical gold is a bad idea since all that gold has *YOUR* signature all over it. The only way I see getting around that would be to change the fundamental nature of the gold such as convert it to orichalcum. That of course doesn't help if you've used Wealth to create other forms of currency / treasure / etc.

But if it did work... a spirit could make a killing in Karma trades for this to people who make orichalcum or other enchanting items...
pbangarth
Yes, it's pretty clear why a Free Spirit PC is not allowed the Wealth Power. That, and a good Enchanting Skill and you would be an engine of Focus production.

Hmmm.... this gives me an idea for an NPC. Building on the Weyland Smith myth/folktale.
Tychicus
Does that mean the Wealth + Astral Hazing = Spirit Counterfeiting?

That would be an interesting way to spread someone else's signature everywhere if you had it out for them. It'd make an interesting addition to Sleazy (or whatever the name of the Karma loan shark was)
Neraph
Uhh. I think it'd be Wealth + Astral Chameleon + Aura Masking = Spirit Counterfeiting.
pbangarth
QUOTE (Neraph @ Oct 18 2010, 07:01 PM) *
Uhh. I think it'd be Wealth + Astral Chameleon + Aura Masking = Spirit Counterfeiting.
Why do you see Astral Chameleon as necessary? Aura Masking allows counterfeiting an aura.
Neraph
Astral Chameleon is an additional -2 to their Assensing. It's like Ruthenium Polymers for your aura.
pbangarth
Ah, OK. Not necessary, just an improvement.

pbangarth
We've played a couple of runs now, and are in the middle of a third one. My FSPC, Bryneir (Norse tradition, name means "Bright Peace") seems to be taking on the role of distractor-/occupier-of-the-minions. Don't know if this will continue.

Somewhere in the current run, there is a toxic mage who knows that something that can disrupt his toxic spirit is around. Should be interesting this Monday night.

There is an old saying, a paraphrase of which is "Experience is the thing you get right after you need it." This applies in Bryneir's case to her selection of the Friendship Pact as the one free Pact for FSPCs. Had I spent some time thinking about it, I may have taken it anyway, but not as blythely as I did in the beginning.

It is certainly the 'friendliest' of the Pacts, as it does not make a zero-sum game out of the earning of Karma. The Karma she earns does not come from any of her teammates or from someone else's pool of Karma. Much less likelihood of subconscious regret or jealousy on the part of other players or significant NPCs. And she gets to earn Karma right away, without having to convince someone to spend theirs for the goodies she can give.

Given that FSPCs can't use electronic devices all that well, having a mental connection to one or more other players is a good thing, though the range is barely more than a Rating 1 device. This counters to some small degree the great mobility benefit FSPCs enjoy.

She has six Friends. Damned if this for all intents and purposes immortal being didn't tie her time on Earth and her Force to a bunch of human and ork gangers. Oops. Time to garner Karma and look for an elf. Quickly.

Cool, she is no longer bound by that 28 days - Force thing if she gets disrupted. She just has to heal up back in Valhalla and come back. Wait....

1) BOD 3 ==> 6 dice base
2) There has to be a Viking Hall somewhere in Valhalla, so conditions "inside", -1 die
3) Medical attention?? For a spirit? In Valhalla??? -3 dice
4) Magician -2 dice

==> 0 dice for healing. Ooookaayyyy....

If the GM is kind, there may be one or more "assistants" who can help, so she may get 1 to 3 dice. This means her turnaround time is likely 28-F6 = 22 days as per normal, with a chance for this being reduced at best to about 10 days. Hmm.... ""Uh, yeah, we hit three Storm Dragons' safe houses while you were away. Got some good swag."

Now, if I had been thinking a bit, then she could have chosen Power Pact. Sure there aren't many magicians in or associated with HoD, but waddaya think the HoD gang would say if she asked for 'a little' Karma from each of them in return for the whole gang being ItNW (12) the next time they stormed the Storm Dragons?
Neraph
Mentioned in another thread but reposting it here:

Instead of neccessarily getting an elf or dwarf Friend(ship Pact), try and find a way to get Hidden Life on the ones you're already Pact'd to.

EDIT: Or getting them all Special Infected (IE: Vampire). Immunity (Age) is in the bonuses.
pbangarth
QUOTE (Neraph @ Dec 5 2010, 12:23 AM) *
Mentioned in another thread but reposting it here:

Instead of neccessarily getting an elf or dwarf Friend(ship Pact), try and find a way to get Hidden Life on the ones you're already Pact'd to.

EDIT: Or getting them all Special Infected (IE: Vampire). Immunity (Age) is in the bonuses.
Thanks. The first is a Greater Power, and not likely to come to a PC. Also I think it only works one one individual. How many lives does one have, to hide?

The second is a bit more feasible, considering that the mechanic PC who is now associated with us is in fact a vampire. And she likes to bite guys. The one PC with whom mine has the Friendship Pact actually has a thing for her, from the past, but has just discovered her state of being. It might be tricky getting him to agree.
Raven the Trickster
QUOTE (pbangarth @ Dec 5 2010, 10:09 AM) *
It might be tricky getting him to agree.


I suspect it will be very difficult (more likely impossible, but who knows, I could be wrong) once he knows for certain (character wise rather than just player wise) that she's a vampire. Thus far he likely suspects but hasn't had it confirmed (she could be a mage with a unique spell that mimics the mist form vampire ability after all, right, right....? At least that's how I'm playing my character at the moment, since Breynir is the only one who knows for sure thus far.) Somehow I don't see her making friends with the elf that I know will be joining us in January... I think she might have some objections to him actually. Your best chance of finding a vampire to match to is probably the afformentioned mechanic.

Also, don't forget it's a bunch of human and ork gangers, one fellow human shadowrunner and a very, very old human street shaman/healer. Even she thinks that last one is going to bite you in the ass.
pbangarth
Yeah, my naivetee in 'gaming' a Free Spirit aptly reflects that of Bryneir after her 'birth', and shows in her choice, early on, of Friends. At the same time, her ethos runs parallel to that of this particular gang, and sometimes that overrides min-maxing logic, even in real life.

Of course, Bryneir might also consider developing the Life Pact power, and infusing Proud Mary (the ancient shaman in question) or one of her other Friends with Immunity to Age via that route. Unfortunately, that can only be done once.

There are so many cool things that can be done with a Free Spirit. I'm having a great time imagining new things to do with her.
Laodicea
Certainly not an optimal solution for the FSPC itself, but the one we came up with for the FSPC in one of my games was this:

FSPC forms a friendship pact with everyone in the team. They all form a magic group together, with the FSPC being sort of the mentor spirit that they follow. All the PCs including the free spirit get an even cut of the Yen earned on a run. Other PCs can then sell their Karma in exchange for Yen that the FSPC owns. The exchange rate was something like :nuyen:5k per 1 karma. This also causes a telepathic link between the FSPC and all other PCs, which makes all the meta-gaming communication that inevitably takes place in a table top game legitimate. It also gives the FSPC and all other PCs a real and vested interest in keeping each other alive.
pbangarth
Hmm... a team entirely of magicians. Cool.

Here's another thought. Not one that may come up very often, but I want to get a sense of whether the concept works:

Mr. Johnson wants Mr. Target (corp exec? whatever) set up for a crime he didn't commit. The reason for setting up Mr. Target would be up to Mr. Johnson, of course.

Bryneir spends time Assensing the aura of Mr. Target. When satisfied she knows it well enough, she materializes at an appropriate time and location, using Mutable Form to look like a woman beaten and abused, tears, mascara running, bruises, etc., clothed with nothing but a shirt held tightly about her. She staggers to the police station and claims, "Mis... mister Target. He did this. He did this to me!"

Police question her. Her memory seems to be gone, and there is no ID. Medics check her, but her Realistic Form holds up, including showing signs of trauma. An astral check is fed appropriate info by her Aura Masking.

Here's the part I wonder about. Can the Aura Masking show a trace of the aura of Mr. Target, tainted with violence? That would be the kicker in a forensic magic investigation.


sabs
You could back that up with BTL software run on Mr Target where he vividly remembers beating/raping the victim.

Lhaes+properly programmed BTL.
pbangarth
I like it!
Dahrken
QUOTE (pbangarth @ Jan 3 2011, 09:11 PM) *
Here's the part I wonder about. Can the Aura Masking show a trace of the aura of Mr. Target, tainted with violence? That would be the kicker in a forensic magic investigation.

Dubious, the aura of someone else does not "rub into" yours.

Also for such a plan to work you will have to provide a place for the action to have happened, place forensic elements of the target there and on/in yourself, and probably create the proper background at that place - what supposedly happened is a severely traumatic event likely to leave an astral trace lasting several hours. While making sure the target does not have a valid alibi for the time period involved.

Also you are basically a SINless person, with no legal identity and absolutely no background. Do you seriously think Rent-A-Cop like LS or KE will press the issue with a "victim" popping out of nowhere and vanishing after dropping such an accusation ?

Unless backed by physical elements, the whole thing scream "framed".
sabs
You'd want for the event to actually happen.]
You as the victim, and then another person with astral masking to pretend to be the guy.

It's a full run to frame someone like that reliably.

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