One of my characters is about to initiate. I was considering to have him learn the Tattoo Metamagic technique, but I have a few questions regarding the rules.

Magic in the Shadows says...

"this variation of quickening must be learned as a seperate metamagical technique"
1. Because it is a variation does this mean that Quickening must be learned first?

"and requires Enchanting Skill and the Tattooing Skill"
2. Does this mean that someone else could not create the tattoo while the one with the
metamagic technique casts the spell?

"one unit of herbal or mineral radicals is required for every 2 force points of the spell
being Quickened"
3. A rating 3 spell would require only 2 units?

If anyone has experience in using this technique or has any insight on the subject please let me
know. I might not be able to respond back right away because I'm at work, but thanks for the help.

Hmmmm, let me think.........I beleive the answers are (and mind you, this is IMHO)....

1) Yes. Since it is a variation, the basics of Quickening must be learned, then the variation next. You don't automatically know everything there is on the subject just because you have the basics. Driving a car and driving a bus are basically the same, but there are differences that you must know before getting behind the wheel.

2) To be safe, having someone with BOTH skills makes it easier. Do it all there & then.

3) Yes a Force 3 spell would cost 2 units, since you would round up all fractions.

If anyone would care to dispute this, I am willing to listen.

Actually, you round down most of the time (spell drain, armor layering, karma costs to improve skills, etc, etc), but thats neither here nor there, as the description doesn't mention division. There are two ways to interpret the wording in the book. One way is "for every 2 full force points of the spell." The other way is "for every 2 force points of the spell, or fraction thereof." Both interpretations are reasonable and justifiable by extrapolating from the way other mechanics in the game work.

I would probably go with the fraction thereof interpretation, meaning that, yes, it takes two units. I would so do based largely on an almost completely unrelated mechanic - because it makes using even-force spells more desireable, whereas drain calculations make odd-force spells more desireable.

Edit: oh yeah, the other two questions...

1)I would say that, no, you dont need to know both - you simply can not quicken a spell without using tatooing unless you have 'normal' quickening as well, nor can you use tatooing if you only possess the normal technique. I think thats the intent of the wording, and it makes sense. Using his analogy (which is poor for SR since they both use the same base skill - but ignore that for now), you can, in theory, learn to drive a bus without ever having learned to drive a car, and vice versa.

2)I agree with BookWyrm that the caster must have all of the relevant skills.

No, knowing Quickening is not necessary in order to learn Tattooing, or it would specifically state that, as it does with other Metamagics that have a prerequisite.

Also, if you had to know quickening an adept could not learn it.

Any one know about using tatoos as a gease?

i generally allow characters to take some sort of 'obvious magic' flaw for 2-3 points. this covers everything from using paper as your medium for magic (a la Read or Die) to tattoo-based physad powers to, well, whatever.

Well I have a player who wants to buy an adept power. The book said he can take a gease on that power to lower the cost. He wants to get a full back peace done as the gease and if the tatoo is damages he will lose the use of the power until it is repaired.

Does this sound ok? He is treating the Tatoo as a Fetish.

i wouldn't allow that in my game, no. it's a neat idea, but i don't feel it's limiting enough to work as a geasa--even doc funk would probably agree with me on this. to make it work, you'd want to either a) randomly decided, every now and then, that a given wound damages the tattoo, or b) try to jam the tattoo into the cyberware damage system presented in M&M. to me, that seems like a lot of work.

what you might do instead is to have the tattoo act as some sort of ordeal, for the adept's next initiate grade. i'd probably treat it as a variant of the thesis ordeal, throwing in some fluff about how the tattoo represents his chi/spirit/whatever.

Interesting, well this is what I was doing.

Let him get the tatoo, it was for improved reflexes Level 3, a 5 point power brought down to 3.25 (I think). I told him that if he takes a deadly damage, he will only have imp ref level 2, a 3 point power, until its repaired. No roll, the tatoo is just damages when he takes a deadly.

Regarding the idea of Quicking being a prerequisite for Tatto Magic. When I first read the rules I
would have originally agreed with Book Wyrm only becuse the book says when the tattoo is
completed the spell is quickened as above (refering to normal Quickening rules). But I believe Farlander and Fortune are right simply because the book does not mention it.

[quote]Also, if you had to know quickening an adept could not learn it.[/qoute]

I didn't know an Adept could learn it, this is useful..... until you're forced through a ward Ouch!

adepts can learn centering, masking, and divination, as well as the new metamagics in SOTA:64.

i don't think the tattoo fetish, as presented, is limiting enough. in my games, players don't take D wound very often; usually when they do something extremely stupid. if you changed it down to S, it'd work better.

touching it up at 25% base cost every 1-2 weeks is way, way too limiting, to me. i'd say 1/year, maybe 1/6 months at most.

And Sensing.

I knew there was another one.

That's the way I rule it, but by the book the Mage does need the actual skill.

Good to hear i'm not the only one doing it this way

I just figure it's only logical. Not too many people could do their own full back or chest tattoos.

One could try, but i don't wanna see the results

Actually, a guy i know started tattooing his left arm. He's a tattoo-artist, doing all his work with the right hand, so it might work.... but it's weird.

Don't get me wrong. Most tattoo people do work on themselves, but they just can't do the big stuff (which equates to high-Force in SR) easily.

Yep, that's right.
hey, Troll Mages rock, don't they? So much skin to cover with really high-force spells

A little note, the average american woman from the 50's had about 16 square feet of skin.

@ BitBasher: yeap. or some not-so-high-but-also-impressive spells

Hmmm...maybe the self tattooing could be done with a high force Magic Fingers, at least the front due to LOS issues, and maybe the back of the legs and lower back. Wouldn't want to be the first to try though

Mirrors

After all, i would prefer a skilled tattoo-artist and jsut give him the enchanted ink. and some idea how the tattoo should look like

Tattooing yourself sounds easy enough, take the skin off, make the tattoo, then put the skin back on again when you are done