Mental Attacks: Visibility Thereof

[austenandrews]

Re: Mental Attacks: Visibility Thereof

 

True. And also' date=' there is nothing any interrogator can do to make something easier to read at that level, unless they can get it into the surface thoughts.[/quote']

I wouldn't say that. I agree with Kristopher that deeper uses of mental powers should be more interesting than hit-roll effect-get result. For instance a skilled interrogator (or hypnotist, etc.) might be able to uncover suppressed memories that the telepath might need an extra +10 to reach. The recent Nightcrawler series touches on that kind of effect.

[Dust Raven]

Re: Mental Attacks: Visibility Thereof

 

I wouldn't say that. I agree with Kristopher that deeper uses of mental powers should be more interesting than hit-roll effect-get result. For instance a skilled interrogator (or hypnotist' date=' etc.) might be able to uncover suppressed memories that the telepath might need an extra +10 to reach. The recent Nightcrawler series touches on that kind of effect.[/quote']

 

Most often, and so often I'd say nearly always, the only way a memory is gonna be easire to read with Telepathy is if the target is currently thinking about it (as in Surface Thoughts). A good psychologist might be able to help the character dig up a 'repressed' memory burried in the subconscious, but something like that takes time (as in months). The danger of that is that a bad psychologist can convince a patient he's had a burried memory and bring it to the surface through continuous discussion about it. The memory is completely false but the patient is convinced it really happened and the memory seems as real as any other. Something like this can really confuse a telepath.

[DangerousDan]

Re: Mental Attacks: Visibility Thereof

 

Personally I think mental powers should default to invisible v.s. non-Mental Awareness senses. Because that's what they do in almost every piece of source material. I generally run it that way.

 

If you're hit by a mental power, by the rules, it is not invisible to you, even if you do not have Mental Awareness. If however, the guy next to you doesn't have Mental Awareness, he's clueless.

 

You can always perceive an attack against you unless it is bought with IPE.

[Dust Raven]

Re: Mental Attacks: Visibility Thereof

 

If you're hit by a mental power, by the rules, it is not invisible to you, even if you do not have Mental Awareness. If however, the guy next to you doesn't have Mental Awareness, he's clueless.

 

You can always perceive an attack against you unless it is bought with IPE.

 

Even with IPE, you can perceive an attack against you (if it hits), though you might not know where the attack originated. Only if IPE is bought in a special way is the actual effect unnoticed.

[DangerousDan]

Re: Mental Attacks: Visibility Thereof

 

Even with IPE' date=' you can perceive an attack against you (if it hits), though you might not know where the attack originated. Only if IPE is bought in a special way is the actual effect unnoticed.[/quote']

 

I agree that I neglected the fact that keeping the victim from noticing is more expensive than keeping everyone else with Mental Awareness from noticing that an attack is occuring, but my point was that you have to pay extra to keep the victim from noticing that he's under attack.

 

With the group I play with, with most mental powers, the GM lets the players know that they've been pinged whenever the OECV vs DECV roll is a hit, even if the "attack" was a mind scan. Those without Mental Awareness know that they've been affected by a mental power and where it came from. Those with Mental Awareness have the information even if they were not the target or if the attack missed.

[prestidigitator]

Re: Mental Attacks: Visibility Thereof

 

I agree that I neglected the fact that keeping the victim from noticing is more expensive than keeping everyone else with Mental Awareness from noticing that an attack is occuring, but my point was that you have to pay extra to keep the victim from noticing that he's under attack.

 

With the group I play with, with most mental powers, the GM lets the players know that they've been pinged whenever the OECV vs DECV roll is a hit, even if the "attack" was a mind scan. Those without Mental Awareness know that they've been affected by a mental power and where it came from. Those with Mental Awareness have the information even if they were not the target or if the attack missed.

Sounds reasonable. Remember, too, that although they might get a little less information (like not knowing who made the attack or its real nature), people observing the target of a Mental Power might certainly be able to notice that they were attacked ("You see Grift stagger for a moment and put a hand to his head, then shake off whatever it was").