How to make a Spirit Material.

[BhelliomRahl]

Good day.

 

Firstly let me explain the world. For this query a rough understanding of three realms of existance is required (There are others but those are not required for this).

Material: Our World

Astral: A Realm of the Mind and Spirit, what exists here are the spirits of creatures and reflections of the material world. Certain people can project there minds here and move about. The key point is that there is not physical aspect to this realm,

Ethereal: This realm consists of Ectoplasm. Ectoplasm has no set form but when a spirit/mind is placed upon it, it takes physical form. The Landscape mirrors the Astral Image of the Material but the will of strong entities can reshape it. So in gerenal most Astral entities have taken form on the ethereal realm, they can do this with little effort (as natural as breathing). This allows interaction. Beings from the material realm can travel here in there physical form. Likewise Astral entities can enter the material realm either through a portal or if strong enough can create their own entrance.

Time and Space do not function as they do in the Material realm.

 

If a spirit releases its ectoplamic body on either the Ethereal or Material Realms it returns to the Astral Realm.

 

This comes to my question, how to make a Spirit Material. Generally I have built the creatures for the material realm as thats where the players have been. However the story is expanding and so are the concepts of the players, one of them has become a spirit himself and we have used possession to possess robotic bodies but he is evolving. Its becoming more important to have a set mechanical method for this process of materialisation.

 

When a spirit takes physical form its physical abilities are based upon its mental strengths and physical appearance does not correspond to abilities or power. i.e. a frail looking human could infact have the ability to lift 5ton.

 

My initial Ideas:

1) Build the creatures as normal for the material realm and state as fact that when in the Astral Realm have no physical abilities.

2) Build a Multiform Power. Original Form is the Astral and the Physical is a secondary.

3) Create the creature as an AI and the physical body as a vehicle.

4) Use the AI as a base and when the creature comes to the Material Realm convert the mental characteristic to Physical. i.e. INT to STR, EGO to DEX, PRE to CON, etc. Method used for Spirits in Shadowrun.

5) Build the creature as a Spirit with Desolification Alway On and then buy a Naked Power to remove the Always On Effect from Desolifaction.

 

 

What ideas do people have?

[Christopher]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

Hello,

 

I'll give it a try:

Is that a heroic or superheroic campaign?

How exaclty is mortality handeled?

When the body on the matieral Plane is destroyed, what happens to the "real" character?

When he creates a material body, is he on both realms simultaniously or only on one?

 

When a spirit takes physical form its physical abilities are based upon its mental strengths and physical appearance does not correspond to abilities or power. i.e. a frail looking human could infact have the ability to lift 5ton.

Generally not a Problem: Characteristics are not obvious. You can't normally say if the character has 10 or 30 STR. Or if thsi 10 STR Character hsa Martial Arts/Powers that give hime +40 STR without endurance cost.

[Laundry Knight]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

Why not build the bodies as summoned objects that are formed and inhabited by the spirit beings?

[Christopher]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

Why not build the bodies as summoned objects that are formed and inhabited by the spirit beings?

That would require a lot of "amiciable", maybe even a Posession Power to get useable effectiveness. Also it could make any such being "unstopable".

 

I might be possible as special effect for Resurrecting Regeneration.

[BhelliomRahl]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

Is that a heroic or superheroic campaign?

High Power Heroic. Setting started as a Futuristic Cyberpunk including Esper Powers but has grown to encompass Dimensional Travel, Intergalatic Travel and a form of Magic which works by altering the universal code, this is very new and has been discovered by exploring a Pre-Human Ruin. (Every phenonimium in universe can be expressed in a language (similair to a computer code) and certain people can temporary rewrite this code - Magic)

 

How exaclty is mortality handeled?

This is an unknown for most people. An Astral Spirit is a combination of Soul and Mind. When the body dies the Spirit returns to the Astral Realm, most people enter a cycle of rebirth but beings which greater control over their Spirit (Espers, Sorcerers, etc) can exist in the Astral and function. Over the centuries may gain enough power to materialise on the material or they could chose to enter the cycle of rebirth.

 

When the body on the matieral Plane is destroyed' date=' what happens to the "real" character?[/quote']

When the body of a materialised Spirit is destroyed the Spirit is returned to the Astral Realm. A Spirit is virtually impossible to destroy, it can be contained.

 

When he creates a material body' date=' is he on both realms simultaniously or only on one?[/quote']

All spirits maintain a connection to the Astral Realm even its but a shadow when on the Material Realm. This shadow is unpercievable and does not interact with it in any fashion. Its only function is to pull the Spirit back to the Astral Realm if is body is destroyed.

 

Hope that helps

[Christopher]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

When the body of a materialised Spirit is destroyed the Spirit is returned to the Astral Realm. A Spirit is virtually impossible to destroy, it can be contained.

[...]

All spirits maintain a connection to the Astral Realm even its but a shadow when on the Material Realm. This shadow is unpercievable and does not interact with it in any fashion. Its only function is to pull the Spirit back to the Astral Realm if is body is destroyed.

 

Hope that helps

It does. When you say "virtuall impossible" do you mean "all means included" or "from the Material Realm"?

In most similar scenarios the Spirit would be killable when attacked on the Astral Plane. If it's not, the Spirit(true form) in the following idea would need some resurrection as well.

 

Here is the idea:

Multiform:

The Spirit Form is the True Form and is defined as being on the Astral Plane (naturally; the same way you can define the standart breathing environment as water).

The Allternate Form (his manifestation) is defined as being on the Material plane.

The Alternate Form also has Regeneration Resurrection (stopped by destroying true Form).

The true form might need some form of scrying or Transdimensional sense or it won't be able to see where it "forms". Or it could alwas form at a specific location (say palce of death).

The Multiform might need some extra Time - this is the time the body needs to form and where the spirit could be attacked.

Each of the two forms has distinct limitaitons - only affecting one realm, only percieving one realm, etc.

 

Astral Planers that can't Project are more powerfull, as they don't have to pay for a Multiform/abiltiy to project.

[Sean Waters]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

Well...you have 3 realms, and each has its own rules. You get from one to the other by (in game terms) Extra Dimensional Movement, either as an inherent power or through a focus (gate). The form you take when you enter a new realm would then be a product of the rules of the realm rather than (necessarily) the build of the character. You could define beings as native to a particular realm and the rules of manifestation, the rules of the realm, might be different depending on what your native realm is and what realm you are entering.

 

That seems the simplest solution otherwise you will have to build some pretty chunky powers into everything. That might be OK if only a very small number of beings can move between realms, but if everyone can potentially do it, it poses more of a problem.

[Doc Democracy]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

I like Sean's approach. I can see any player having between one and three character sheets depending on where they are able to go. When materialising on the physical plane I presume that the same form would materialise each time?

 

What interests me here is whether Plane Walkers would be able to perceive other Plane Walkers and whether attacks with a trans-dimensional advantage might be able to attack another form (presuming that the walker inhabits all three planes at the same time).

 

Doc

[Mister E]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

Can you not build the extra-D virtual "body" as a self-resurrecting Computer "Follower":

• that shares the PC's "mental" characteristics/skills/talents/powers via the Unified Power limitation...
  
• and give it the ability to resurrect the PC by hacking into automated biological fabrication plants around the world a la Ghost Rider 2099?
  

 

 

Computers lack PRE, but they have plenty of other metaphysical characteristics that may be considered "spiritual".

 

The 2 biggest ones being INT & EGO...

... logos & pathos [respectively to PRE as thymos*]...

... the 3 parts of Plato's psyche/soul.

 

 

 

*spirit, blood, breath, fire, Paladin-Power™, "& all the stuff,"... etc.

[Lucius]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

I would build the spirit as an AI, and the physical manifestation might be Multiform or perhaps Duplication with an altered Duplicate if the spirit remains "spiritually aware" and active while maintaining a body.

 

Lucius Alexander

 

on the Plane of Palindromedaries

[BhelliomRahl]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

You could define beings as native to a particular realm and the rules of manifestation' date=' the rules of the realm, might be different depending on what your native realm is and what realm you are entering.[/quote']

 

I like this idea. Maybe I might combine this with some of mine. A character's form is defined by his ancestry and the realm they exist on at present.

If I create some templates for each realm and ancestry which can be applied where appropiate.

Might be worth including a VPP in the template, size depending on strength of the individual which can be distributed to physical characteristics and specific powers.

 

When materialising on the physical plane I presume that the same form would materialise each time?

Most being have a form which they percieve themselves to possess and will take this form when materialise. However more powerful beings can change what form they appear as.

 

What interests me here is whether Plane Walkers would be able to perceive other Plane Walkers and whether attacks with a trans-dimensional advantage might be able to attack another form (presuming that the walker inhabits all three planes at the same time)

When a being is in one Realm he does not exist on the others. So attacking a targets Astral Self while they are materialise is not possible, however a materialised being can attack a Astral being if they are close enough to the veil between the two realms (The Astral Realm close to the the veil mimics the Material Realm).

 

Thank you

[Christopher]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

Most being have a form which they percieve themselves to possess and will take this form when materialise. However more powerful beings can change what form they appear as.

That is propably easiest built with additional Multiforms or Shape Shift

[Doc Democracy]

Re: How to make a Spirit Material.

 

Yeah - if it is just the form that changes (with no significant power changes) then Shape Shift is probably the core power - possibly limited by something like (can only change when entering the material plane...)

 

Doc