Damascan

Re: Possession Points taken. These would make things a little cheaper, making it reasonable for a PC wizard to have a Possession spell...

Re: Possession As the original poster, I'd like to clarify why I was interested in Possession being implemented via ExtraDimensional Movement (EDM) + Mind Control, as compared to a Transform: I wanted the possessor to be inside the host completely, and not locatable by any means other than Mental ones. I also wanted to allow for Mindscape adventures, where other heroes might venture into the host's mind in an attempt to free the host. Accomplishing that effect with Transform would really be more trouble than it's worth when Mind Control and EDM provide a more elegant approach. Yes, I agree that Transform might be more appropriate for a long-term possession, but I would still want to link it to EDM to preserve the possessor's psyche/body, unless you are doing quasi-body-swapping, leaving your 'meat body' behind to invade the host. And even then, what would be the trigger to reverse the transform? A successful Ego roll or some Breakout equivalent? Perhaps, but doesn't this bring us back to Transform being used when you really are striving for a Mind Control Effect? As I said in the beginning, most of the Possession variations I had seen didn't seem very satisfying. Mind Control + EMD + EGO roll to invade really seem to meet my need --- thanks GloryFox. Markdoc, thanks for the concept of fetters and the idea that the ghosts would actually be doing all the manipulation via Extra-Dimensional Mind Scanning and Mind Control from the ethereal plane -- that also has its merit and uses in my campaign. Damascan Blade

Re: Possession Markdoc, Your approach works great for ghosts, and I will definitely use it for that. However, even though at this moment I need for ghosts to be able to possess people, I am still going to need an approach for the demon that is actually in our plane and then physically moves into his/her victim --- sort of the Jericho of Teen Titans effect. Any for the kick-out? A Side-Effect that happens when the MindScan is broken?

All, I've been trying to design a decent means of a spirit possession, so that ghosts can possess people. I know that the Ultimate Mentalist had a variation, but I really found the get-desolid-and-cling-to-the-inside-of-the-character approach as awkward at best. I mean, what if the victim is small --- then you have this ghostly character superimposed on the victim. Not what I was looking for. Anyway, is there any reason not to use ExtraDimensional Movement to achieve this by having the ghost port into the victim's Mindscape and then Mind Control the victim from there? The Limitation on both of these is that there must be a successful Mind Scan at EGO+10 for the ghost to get a fix on the victim before it ports into the Mindscape. Then, as I figure it, the ghost can use it's Mind Control through the Mind Scan lock on the victim. If the Mind Scan is broken, then the ghost is evicted from the Mindscape. This approach would seem to fit the flavor I am looking for better. This means that the ghost (or whomever) doesn't have to immediately take control of the victim, but only when it wants to. Also, this would potentially allow for others to battle the ghost in the victim's Mindscape, which provides plenty of adventure potential. Any thoughts? What I haven't figured out is how to do the writeup for the the automatic port out of the Mindscape when the LInk is broken. Any thoughts?

Re: What is Your Favorite Item? I think you're all forgetting the incredible amount of fun you can have with Love Potions. Of course, it's only funny if you're not on the receiving end and if the Potion isn't limited to same race, opposite gender, etc. Then again, if the effects are permanent, things can get pretty tragic...

Re: Best magic system? Check out Oddhat's Imperium Romanum - A fantasy campaign thread in the Fantasy section of this site. He did a great job thinking up a coherent system that is not really so much rules based as conceptually based. He's even provided sample characters and scenarios, and it all reads like a novel...

Re: Superheroes, Power and Responsbility Regarding the 'Why don't supers cure cancer?' gripe --- I guess in a more realistic reality they might. The question is, what would nature throw at us to take cancer's place, if cancer serves a purpose in nature? If you cure cancer, couldn't you possibly engender a mutation that could have worse consequences for humanity? Maybe the brainy supers realized that curing cancer would cause some horrible repercussions that we are not yet ready to accept. Then again, maybe the supers are constantly battling more hideous viruses and diseases, but we never hear about them because the public would go into panic mode, riots would start, end of the world parties, etc.

Re: Imperium Romanum - A fantasy campaign Oddhat, Now that you have presented Airships, that raises the question of what other technological equivalents may exist. For instance, is there a magical messenger system (i.e., using the telepathic/astral powers of the majickers)? Do those inclined to summon small demons or familiars use them or even rent them out as messengers? Also, how has the existance of magic changed the way structures, especially defensive structures, are built? Information security would be quite the issue if you have enemy clairvoyants spying on you. What countermeasures might the rulers take? From SatinKitty's story, it begs to ask: why didn't the Emperor know? What protective spells must the Russ have had in place to prevent the detection of their attack plans before the attack had begun? Or perhaps the Emperor chose to ignore the warning signs/portents? What reason could he have had for doing that?

Re: Imperium Romanum - A fantasy campaign Good job, SatinKitty. Now the plot thickens, with international intrigues on the rise. Looks like the good old Slavs are going to give the Imperium a run for its money..... I wonder why they are so interested in hostages...

Re: Tu Whiu; A Whip martial art. I like this idea. You're using the Fantasy Hero writeup for whips on this, right? That would give you a 3" range for your attacks, and the Limited Range Limitation (-1/4). The 4" you show for your Grab attack sounds like a very long whip --- that's 24'! I'm not saying you're wrong --- it's just surprising, and I imagine such a whip would be more difficult to use than the standard FH whip. Also, it seems like there might be a Presence Attack of some sort due to surprise, cracking the whip, etc., especially vs. animals or those with exceptional hearing (which is most animals....) I would use that over the Flash attack you have defined as the Crack of the Whip, since I expect it's not so much deafening as greatly disturbing...

Re: Imperium Romanum - A fantasy campaign Oddhat, How long/wide are these airships? You gave the weights of what the carry and how many passengers, but how large is the basket and the air chamber? How fragile are they? Could a stray bird (or arrow) cause a fatal puncture? How high might these fly? Do any of the monasteries or temples have their own variations, perhaps powered however slightly by magic?

Re: Imperium Romanum - A fantasy campaign Geeze! SatinKitty, instead of bumping, why don't you contribute? Weren't you the one that wrote one of the storylines for the vampire attack? Well, where have you all gone from there? What new and fantastic adventures have you had? Or, what other interesting characters are in the campaign? What spells? Inquiring minds want to know....

Re: Designing Sword Schools Maybe I missed this in some of your links, but does anyone have fighting styles designed for halflings, dwarves, elves, etc? As someone earlier had said, one would expect those styles to take into account the natural enemies of those races, as well as their typical environments. So, dwarves using their style would probably not jump much, but you would expect them to be able to fight in tight spaces effectively, perhaps focusing more on thrusting than slashing moves. Also, they may have certain move geared only towards taller opponents, or racial enemies... What can I say, I'm lazy, and I'm hoping someone has already done this work for me.... Thanks all.

Re: Night Watch/Day Watch Hero True, but it's hard to be on the run if everyone, Dark, Light, and Twilight, are hunting you. Not likely that you'd last long unless you had your own people on the inside of each organization. And how long would they stay on your side?

Re: Night Watch/Day Watch Hero The campaign would be pretty dark, on the whole. Let's not forget the whole fact that everybody is monitoring everybody else for violations of the noninterference treaty. You could have people earning Perks to perform Level 4 and Level 3 interventions, etc. Then again, maybe that's what our FBI, CIA, and cops do anyway... It would be an intriguing campaign, but I would think that you would have to have characters that like to think ahead and enjoy politics and chess, and don't mind being pawns most of the time!