Geas, Oath, Contract......

[Lucius]

I've been called Master of the Obvious, but I have a feeling that for once I'm rolling 18 on my "Detect Obvious Answer" power.

 

How do I craft a spell that can be cast on a person (with or perhaps without their consent) that will be "in abeyance" unless and until that person does a specific action?

 

Example:

 

Honorable Parole

Energy Blast No Normal Defense linked to Sight and Sound Flash, Radius.

Cast on a surrendered enemy, this spell does not manifest until the prisoner either attacks the caster or anyone in the caster's party, or attempts to escape. Then the prisoner is hopefully stunned, deafened, and blinded, not to mention attracting the attention of the guards with all that light and noise.

 

Lucius Alexander

 

The palindromedary claims to know, but it's not telling me!

[Lethosos]

Re: Geas, Oath, Contract......

 

Well, theoretically, it would be a Useable On Others spell, with the Trigger Limitation.

[AmadanNaBriona]

Re: Geas, Oath, Contract......

 

Here's a magic sword I wrote up from the old board archives. It's main power is to create a beneficial Geas among a group of heros who swear an oath together upon it.

 

Might give you some ideas.

It was written in 4th Edition tho, so the costs might be off, and some advantages might not be quite how you'd do it in 5th (The Triggers, for instance, probably want Automatic reset)

 

Oathbinder

Crafted long ago, by the greatest smiths of the Sidhe, this elegantly crafted bronze blade is home to mighty enchantments. A Queen amongst the Sidhe, dismayed by the knowledge that mankind was free to foreswear their oaths without punishment from the Gods, had this blade crafted to bind the life forces of oath takers to their sworn quests, granting aid to those truesworn and doom to those who spoke false. Often this blade has found its way into the hands of mortals, but it usually returns in time to the Otherworld, where it is still used to bind mortals to quests of glory or necessity.

 

Oathbinder is a superbly crafted, artfully made leaf blade bastard sword of reddish bronze, with a shimmering patina of reds, purples and blues swimming along the blade. The guard and pommel are covered in intricate spiral patterns, and the hilt is wrapped in knobby, iridescent black leather from some otherworld beast’s hide. The blade has no obvious manifestations of power, but touching the blade will send a cold chill up the spine of most mortals.

 

Though Oathbider is a superb weapon, most of its powers are not apparent in combat…at first. Swearing on Oathbinder is, as the name implies, binding. As long as an oathtaker is true to their quest, they will find themselves difficult to harm, linked as one in purpose with other oathtakers, led by omens towards their goal, and filled with a supernatural vitality… this vitality increases both when they come closer to victory and when one of their sworn fellows falls. However, if they foreswear their oath or swear foolishly to something impossible, the magic of the sword will be merciless, turning the very fabric of existence against them. Tales are oft told, within the hollow hills, of the foolish mortal hero who swore not to rest till a marauding worm had been slain. After tracking the fell beast for three days, he collapsed into an exhausted sleep and found upon awakening that he bore the crushing burden of a broken geis upon his soul. By the same token, swearing that a foe will die by your hand invites doom, as you will be foresworn if such a foe dies by any other means.

 

All powers are OAF(-1), Independent (-2)

 

-- 2D6 HKA: +2 OCV (40 active) Str Min 13/11 2handed StrMin [Active/3] (-3/4), 1 1/2 handed (-1/4)

-- Mind Link: up to 8 people at one time, O end (37 active) Gestures [touch blade] (-1/4), Incantations [swear oath] (-1/4), costs End (-1/2), 1 charge [recovers when oath is fulfilled or all oathtakers are dead or foresworn] (-2) SideFX [6d6 unluck if oath is foresworn] (-1/2)

Detect Dedication: sense, Discrim., +8, based on ECV (works through link) (52 active) Only usable by sword to activate powers and SideFX (16 or less PER roll)

-- Detect Goal of Oath: sense, ranged, 360 degrees, discriminatory (25 base) No Range Mod (+1/2), Usable by Others -up to 8 (+1 3/4) (81 active) Only usable by those sworn to oath (-1/2), no conscious control (-2), Visible (-1/4), Requires a SR (KS: Omens) on Discriminatory (This is the appearance of omens leading the questers toward their goal)

-- 50% Damage Reduction: physical & energy, resistant (60 base) Usable by others: up to 8 (+1 3/4) (165 active) Oathsworn Only (-1/2), only when pursuing goal (-1/2), SideFX [every point of Body damage not taken by character due to reduction is taken as 1 point of cumulative major transform [living to dead] with a time delay [when quest is complete]. These transform points heal like body, and healing is not aided by any other powers from the sword] (-1) (This is the life force linkage, and part of the vitality… as long as the quest is being followed, the questers are able to ignore much pain and damage… but it is quite possible for the effect to kill them if their life force has not recovered before the quest is finished)

-- 1D6 Aid: To all CHA of a group (Body, Con, End, Rec, End and Stun) (+2) Increased Max to 30 (+12 base), Fade rate 5pts/year (+2 1/4), Continuous (+1), 0 Endurance persistent (+1) Variable trigger [when quest is sworn, when questers are slain, or when a significant goal towards completion of the quest is attained] (+1/2) Usable by others: up to 8 (+1 3/4) (161 active) Only usable by those sworn to the quest (-1/2), Aid Fades completely at successful conclusion of quest or when foresworn) (-1/2) (This is the rest of the vitality boost. 1D6 is granted to each quester each time the trigger activates. This increases their vitality a bit at the start, but increases as the quest continues. As those who have sworn together have linked lives, each increases in vigor when one of their numbers falls)

 

As you can see, this is an artifact level item, but not overly unbalancing. It was also designed so that the owner of the blade does not need to be one of those who swears to undertake a quest… it’s a great plot device.

 

Here's the "rescued from the archives" Magic Items thread, if you haven't already found it. It has some gems hidden in it.

http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4015

[Sociotard]

Re: Geas, Oath, Contract......

 

I did something like this with a trigger. It worked well.

[Michael Hopcroft]

Re: Geas, Oath, Contract......

 

How would you build a spell that imposes a 'quest" or task on an unwilling person, compelling them to complete that task whether they like it or not? It is obviously Mind Control, but somewhat more subtle than standard Mind Control in that the character gets soem discretion in HOW the task is accomplished.

 

Example 1: A geas has been placed upon you compelling you to 'detsroy every tree on this continent". You will stop at nothing to accomplish this fantastic task, with total commitment, and be creatuve and resourceful in how you go about your holy crusade against everything tall and woody.

 

example 2: "Dirk Wagonslayer" is, thanks to a geas (and bad typography) compelled by forces beyond his control to attack and destroy every wagon he comes across. He doesn't care about the driver, the passengers, the cargo or the animals pulling it -- all he wants to do is KILL THE WAGON so that it will never rise again to menace the countryside.

 

Example 3 (somewhat less silly): You, as a High Knight, have been compelled by a geas to protect the lovely princess -- and her personal purity -- at all cost to yourself. Although protecting the princess' safety is something you would do anyway, the geas also compels you to keep your hands off and not to tell her how madly in love with her you are -- this is deliberate, as the King has noticed this, that the feeling is mutual, and that this fact could spoil the state marriage he has planned to prevent him from having to fight a war he cannot possibly win.

[AmadanNaBriona]

Re: Geas, Oath, Contract......

 

How would you build a spell that imposes a 'quest" or task on an unwilling person, compelling them to complete that task whether they like it or not? It is obviously Mind Control, but somewhat more subtle than standard Mind Control in that the character gets soem discretion in HOW the task is accomplished.

 

Example 1: A geas has been placed upon you compelling you to 'detsroy every tree on this continent". You will stop at nothing to accomplish this fantastic task, with total commitment, and be creatuve and resourceful in how you go about your holy crusade against everything tall and woody.

 

example 2: "Dirk Wagonslayer" is, thanks to a geas (and bad typography) compelled by forces beyond his control to attack and destroy every wagon he comes across. He doesn't care about the driver, the passengers, the cargo or the animals pulling it -- all he wants to do is KILL THE WAGON so that it will never rise again to menace the countryside.

 

Example 3 (somewhat less silly): You, as a High Knight, have been compelled by a geas to protect the lovely princess -- and her personal purity -- at all cost to yourself. Although protecting the princess' safety is something you would do anyway, the geas also compels you to keep your hands off and not to tell her how madly in love with her you are -- this is deliberate, as the King has noticed this, that the feeling is mutual, and that this fact could spoil the state marriage he has planned to prevent him from having to fight a war he cannot possibly win.

 

The way I did it for my Epic Celtic campaign was as a transformation attack that adds a Disadvantage to the target, either Dependence (On persuing the quest, for instance) or a Susepctibility (6d6 Unluck when geis is broken), and sometimes also a Psych (obesssion with doing X).

Geis (Geisa plural) come to us by name from celtic myths, and the two main kind you see are bans, or prohibitions (such as Cu Chulainns "Never Eat the flesh of a Dog" and "Never be awoken before you akwake naturally") that cause great misfortune to fall on the geis breaker should he fail to follow the prohibitions. The other variety are more like the classic AD&D approach, where

someone is driven by a geis towards acheiving some goal. These can be laid on you by another who has the power to do so or adopted yourself deliberately. These kinds of Geisa tend to "push" the hero in a particular direction more by punishing inaction than by rewarding action.

 

This is one of the places I use the idea of a Spiritual Transform

[Lucius]

Re: Geas, Oath, Contract......

 

Well' date=' theoretically, it would be a Useable On Others spell, with the Trigger Limitation.[/quote']

 

Usable On Others? Wouldn’t that give the SUBJECTS of the spell the power to inflict the attack, not make them suffer it themselves?

 

The way I did it for my Epic Celtic campaign was as a transformation attack that adds a Disadvantage to the target' date=' either Dependence (On persuing the quest, for instance) or a Susepctibility (6d6 Unluck when geis is broken), and sometimes also a Psych (obesssion with doing [i']X[/i]).

Geis (Geisa plural) come to us by name from celtic myths, and the two main kind you see are bans, or prohibitions (such as Cu Chulainns "Never Eat the flesh of a Dog" and "Never be awoken before you akwake naturally") that cause great misfortune to fall on the geis breaker should he fail to follow the prohibitions. The other variety are more like the classic AD&D approach, where

someone is driven by a geis towards acheiving some goal. These can be laid on you by another who has the power to do so or adopted yourself deliberately. These kinds of Geisa tend to "push" the hero in a particular direction more by punishing inaction than by rewarding action.

 

This is one of the places I use the idea of a Spiritual Transform

 

Funny you should mention that….I think I’m going to start another thread…

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Transform, dromedary to palindromedary…

[AmadanNaBriona]

Re: Geas, Oath, Contract......

 

Usable On Others? Wouldn’t that give the SUBJECTS of the spell the power to inflict the attack, not make them suffer it themselves?

 

 

 

Funny you should mention that….I think I’m going to start another thread…

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Transform, dromedary to palindromedary…

Not all that funny, really.

I saw your question to Steve and was going to answer, then I realized it was in 5th Ed rules Questions rather than Hero System Discussion. The Transform categories work PERFECT for my FH game, because long before the new transform rule came out, I had already developed a metaphysics system for my game that divided the Self into three realms... Physical, Mental, and Spiritual.

So, your question influenced my mentioning it

[Lucius]

Re: Geas, Oath, Contract......

 

Not all that funny, really.

I saw your question to Steve and was going to answer, then I realized it was in 5th Ed rules Questions rather than Hero System Discussion. The Transform categories work PERFECT for my FH game, because long before the new transform rule came out, I had already developed a metaphysics system for my game that divided the Self into three realms... Physical, Mental, and Spiritual.

So, your question influenced my mentioning it

 

I just opened the topic for general discussion in the Hero System forum.

 

Lucius Alexander

 

The palindromedary notes that it may be a general discussion but any rank can contribute.

[Robyn]

Re: Geas, Oath, Contract......

 

Usable On Others? Wouldn’t that give the SUBJECTS of the spell the power to inflict the attack' date=' not make them suffer it themselves?[/quote']

 

I think he means the one who inflicts the geas can use it on others.

[Markdoc]

Re: Geas, Oath, Contract......

 

You guys seem to be making this much more complicated than it needs to be (ooh! Surprise! )

 

What you want is .... trigger. That's it, nothing else. UB/AO is not required (unless you want to use a movement power as an attack or something similar).

 

When you drop the geas on someone, all that happens is that you use a power (then and there) which will take effect if triggered by a later event. So to geas someone, mindcontrol or transform is probably NOT what you want: a geas does not normally *compel* someone to act in a certain way. It provides them with a very strong 'reason' to act in a certain way. If they don't act that way, the geas kicks in: they suffer some sort of penalty or lose some sort of benefit.

 

In the latter case - I use geases a lot in my current game - a geas can be beneficial. If you accept a geas, you get a gift: a magical power. If you break the geas, you lose the power (the gift gets the independant limitation, so there needs to be a way to lose it: thus the loss is part of the special effect of independant and needs neither trigger nor a limitation).

 

cheers, Mark