"Perceivability" of Breakout Rolls

[bigdamnhero]

How obvious is it to others that a character has made their Breakout Roll from a continuing-effect mental power?

 

Say a mentalist has successfully attacked a target with Mind Control and given them a command. Presumably the mentalist (or at least the player) knows their attack has succeeded. Then the target successfully makes their Breakout Roll; does the mentalist know if the Breakout Roll was successful or not?  In many/most cases it becomes obvious when the target refuses to follow your command, but what if the target wants to pretend to go along with the command to lure the mentalist off guard? Does the mentalist automatically know that their Mind Control is no longer in effect? (Assume the mentalist is not also using Telepathy or Mind Link on the target to read their mental state.)

 

Follow-up questions:

1. Does the answer change if the mentalist is continuing to expend END to prevent deterioration?
2. Does Invisible Power Effects change this? 
3. I assume in any case that non-mentalist bystanders can only assume it worked/didn't work based on the target's behavior, right?

Thanks.

[Steve Long]

If a character who’s used a continuing-effect Mental Power (the “mentalist”) on another character (the “target”) maintains mental contact with the target (for example, to keep “talking” to him using Telepathy, or to pay END so the power doesn’t deteriorate), then the mentalist automatically knows if the target has succeeded with a Breakout Roll. If the mentalist hasn’t maintained mental contact, then he does not automatically know that — it’s going to depend on the circumstances, how the target acts, and other factors.

 

Invisible Power Effects does not change or affect this rule.

 

Characters who are not the mentalist or target do not automatically know if the target has succeeded with a Breakout Roll (or even necessarily that he’s been attacked with a Mental Power, for that matter). Again, it all depends on circumstances and conduct. In some games, the GM might rule that Mental Awareness would allow a character to perceive this, based on how Mental Powers work in the campaign.