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Vulnerability: Favor Points


Super Squirrel

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Lets say I'm building a Sorcerer in Valdorian Age that I want to be particularly vulnerable to accumulating Favor Points. Favor Points are only gained when you fail a spell casting attempt or a summoning attempt.

 

I'm curious how much value you would give to the disadvantage for double Favor Points. I would normally simply treat it as Uncommon Vulnerability with Double Effect for 10 points, but because it can only come by actions the Sorcerer takes and can be avoided by actions such as taking Extra Time in the summoning process, I'm not sure this should be the case.

 

Any input?

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Re: Vulnerability: Favor Points

 

Lets say I'm building a Sorcerer in Valdorian Age that I want to be particularly vulnerable to accumulating Favor Points. Favor Points are only gained when you fail a spell casting attempt or a summoning attempt.

 

I'm curious how much value you would give to the disadvantage for double Favor Points. I would normally simply treat it as Uncommon Vulnerability with Double Effect for 10 points, but because it can only come by actions the Sorcerer takes and can be avoided by actions such as taking Extra Time in the summoning process, I'm not sure this should be the case.

 

Any input?

Youre on the right track; the Frequency is your guide there. If it happens Uncommonly, then make it an Uncommon Frequency. If it happens Rarely....etc etc

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Re: Vulnerability: Favor Points

 

The call isn't frequency though. The frequency is the easy part.

 

Every example I have seen shows Vulnerabilities for attacks vs. the character. In this situation, it is something that happens when the character messes up. I guess, what I'm looking for is the total value. Do you think 10 points is good for this Vulnerability? On one hand the character can take precautions to safeguard himself.

 

Take this potential scenario into consideration.

 

An elementalist is sneaking around a back ally looking for a contact that is supposed to help get him into Underfoot Pass so that he can re-unite with his friends. Two thieves surprise him and decide they are going to gut him. In a rush, he summons a Fire Elemental to help him out. He hurries the summon to a full phase. Fortunately, he has some PSL to offset Hurried Summoning. Instead of taking a -9 on his roll, he drops it to a -7. But with his Elemental Magic 14-, he still needs a 7 or less. He rolls a 12. That's 10 favor points before Ego negotiations kick in. That is a significant drop.

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Re: Vulnerability: Favor Points

 

The call isn't frequency though. The frequency is the easy part.

 

Every example I have seen shows Vulnerabilities for attacks vs. the character. In this situation, it is something that happens when the character messes up. I guess, what I'm looking for is the total value. Do you think 10 points is good for this Vulnerability? On one hand the character can take precautions to safeguard himself.

 

Take this potential scenario into consideration.

 

An elementalist is sneaking around a back ally looking for a contact that is supposed to help get him into Underfoot Pass so that he can re-unite with his friends. Two thieves surprise him and decide they are going to gut him. In a rush, he summons a Fire Elemental to help him out. He hurries the summon to a full phase. Fortunately, he has some PSL to offset Hurried Summoning. Instead of taking a -9 on his roll, he drops it to a -7. But with his Elemental Magic 14-, he still needs a 7 or less. He rolls a 12. That's 10 favor points before Ego negotiations kick in. That is a significant drop.

Actually, I just thought of something. It feels more like (Penalty?) Skill Levels with the RSR Skill, that themselves have Side Effects (probably at a slightly reduced level because the side effects only occur when the Skill Levels were actually necessary for the success of the roll). If you think about it, this should not really be a Disadvantage because it allows the character to succeed when (s)he normally wouldn't (based on the example), just with a price!

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Re: Vulnerability: Favor Points

 

Actually' date=' I just thought of something. It feels more like (Penalty?) Skill Levels with the RSR Skill, that themselves have [i']Side Effects[/i] (probably at a slightly reduced level because the side effects only occur when the Skill Levels were actually necessary for the success of the roll). If you think about it, this should not really be a Disadvantage because it allows the character to succeed when (s)he normally wouldn't (based on the example), just with a price!

I'm not following you here.

 

Under the normal rules, the person takes 5 Favor Points instead of 10. Not to sound patronizing, but you are familiar with the Favor Point system, right?

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Re: Vulnerability: Favor Points

 

I'm not following you here.

 

Under the normal rules, the person takes 5 Favor Points instead of 10. Not to sound patronizing, but you are familiar with the Favor Point system, right?

Ah. I was familiar with it at one point, but I forget most of the details. Was there a system built for them, or is it simply a hand-waving deal?

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Re: Vulnerability: Favor Points

 

I would have built the whole system as something like (P)SLs with the various Skills that have a Side Effect, in which case the spellcaster could simply take the difference in points due to increasing the level of the Side Effects on the (P)SLs. If these (P)SLs are an Everyman ability, the decrease in such an ability I would allow as a Disadvantage.

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Re: Vulnerability: Favor Points

 

Ah. I was familiar with it at one point' date=' but I forget most of the details. Was there a system built for them, or is it simply a hand-waving deal?[/quote']

The official Valdorian Age magic system actually.

 

Sorcerers collect Favor Points either positive or negative. If they drop below 15 negative, a supernatural creature may ask them for a favor. The lower they go, the bigger the favor might be that they need to do.

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Re: Vulnerability: Favor Points

 

The official Valdorian Age magic system actually.

 

Sorcerers collect Favor Points either positive or negative. If they drop below 15 negative, a supernatural creature may ask them for a favor. The lower they go, the bigger the favor might be that they need to do.

Certainly. But along with the actual effects, was there actual system built for the acquisition of the points, or is it just an un-statted add on?

 

(You must forgive me. I don't own the source book and it has been ages since I had the opportunity to read through it.)

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Re: Vulnerability: Favor Points

 

Certainly. But along with the actual effects, was there actual system built for the acquisition of the points, or is it just an un-statted add on?

 

(You must forgive me. I don't own the source book and it has been ages since I had the opportunity to read through it.)

It is an unstatted add on. You can BUY positive favor points at 1 XP a point. I guess you could think of them as the Favor Perk in large doses, burned through like a candle in a fireplace.

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Re: Vulnerability: Favor Points

 

It is an unstatted add on. You can BUY positive favor points at 1 XP a point. I guess you could think of them as the Favor Perk in large doses' date=' burned through like a candle in a fireplace.[/quote']

:sigh: I would probably attempt to build them anyway, and figure the difference between the normal Side Effect and the increased one, as I mentioned above.

 

Otherwise I would probably build it according to the likely probability of spells failing. A x2 Vulnerability with the frequency depending upon the typical Skill Roll penalty for spells and the typical Skill Level for the RSR Skills (maybe even the Skill value for the individual character). Go with the usual 8-, 11-, 14- thing that Disadvantages use to distinguish Infrequent, Frequent, and Very Frequent. Then probably halve the value of the whole thing unless magic is a really, really common solution in your campaign.

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