Dexterity + Larceny +/- Tools. You should also take a Wits + Larceny to see if you either brought tools along to pick locks (with 3+ successes) or can find something around you, like a bobby pin and pen knife (with 1 or more successes). It'll be at a -2 because it's kind of an unlikely thing to bring along.
Of course, there's more than one way to get around a lock, especially for a wizard...
Well, it seems as though Prometheus will not be picking locks... Mind and Prime just aren't the best for this one.
There are plenty of things you can do to get past the lock that don't involve picking it. For instance, you know that the lock and piano both extend into the Twilight, which is not the usual state of affairs. With Prime, you could analyze the items, and perhaps end that effect. Also, the lock certainly has a corresponding key; maybe you can find it. With Phantasm (Prime 3) you could probably make yourself a really nice set of lockpicks. Alternatively, there are at least two NPCs that you can talk to without the use of magic spells. Perhaps they could be of use? And your Celestial Fire (Prime 3) can target things in the Twilight, as well, if you can manage a large enough ball of energy.
Some GMs put a lock on something so the guy who knows how to pick them has something to do. I put it there hoping that you'll find a way to bypass it that I hadn't thought of.
That is true, but hopefully someone will have a more obvious solution for a problem this simple. If no one speaks up, I'm sure Prometheus can save the day somehow, but for now he will be content to simply watch. That being said, I think that trading with one of the ghosts/spirits seems like the best idea.
Quick pop in, my finals are underway, and I should be fully back in a few days; before the end of the week, I think. A few comments on locks vs. magic, since we're on the topic...
Mind's Gain Skill spell is a wonderful spell - just materialize points in Larceny at will (please note that dots gained are capped at Mind dots - an error I made earlier - to a hard cap of 5 until Mind 4). Matter 1 defeats electronic locks easily simply by turning them off with Alter Conductivity. Matter 2 can shape a water-form key with a combination of Animate Water and Craftsman's Eye, or simply command it to open with a Ruling practice (screw Silver Ladder - Moros don't need any stinking Spirit magic to animate objects, like it doesn't need Mind for zombies that follow commands). Most fraying practices can simply destroy them. Space can trace it's sympathetic connections to keys that were made to open it, then use Finder to locate it. Fate could be used to find the key easily, especially if it's casually hidden. Time can Postcognate the last time it was opened, then try tracing the key from there. Spirit can communicate with the sleeping spirit of the lock and make it co-operative, and Life can transmute/command tiny insects to muck around with the gears, not to mention Puissant Skill for the experienced lock-picker and stat boosts.
...
Or you could just ask for the key.
__________________ I hate to interrupt, but I believe we're being followed. The Mimes on the street corner. No, don't look. ~ Mycroft, Broken Diamond
Proud supporter of Dreamscarred Press and Untapped Potential, New Horizons in Psionics. Get it now! It's the best 5 dollars you'll ever spend.
For anyone who wants to try this, the check would be your choice of Dexterity + Expression or Presence + Expression. If you succeed at it, we'll assume that you had piano lessons at some point, rather that worry about "OMG it's not on your charsheet you can't!!1"
I thought it might help to give you guys a quick refresher of just what it is The Nemean wants you to do:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hella_Tellah
"There's a spirit in Cormant House that doesn't belong here. While I get these dishes cleaned up, I want you five to try to get the spirit to move along. You're welcome to use any spells you like," he chuckled, "Just so long as you don't break anything."
Also,
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hella_Tellah
"Figuring that out [which spirit doesn't belong] is part of the test. You have to know where to look. I will save you some time, though: we have more than one spirit in this house. You need to pick the right one. And don't get rid of any of the other ones; I like those ones. Figure out the spirit that doesn't belong. You know: 'one of these things is not like the others...'"
Remember that the whole point of this is to impress him, and convince him that you're capable enough to do some work for the Consilium in exchange for a sanctum and hallow.
Sorry Hellah, it's time I drop out. I just don't feel that fire or inspiration to post anymore. It's become more of a chore than something fun.
Don't get me wrong though, I think you're a badass ST and I really love my character but I'm just not feeling the inter-PC chemistry. I could churn out filler posts but it wouldn't be doing Gabriel justice. I put too much thought into his background to just put him through the motions.
Anyway, if you ever try your hand at ST'ing a Hunter: The Vigil game, definitely look me up. I'd love to apply.
Have fun and give The Nemean a few noogies from G.
Well, the writing's on the wall: two players inactive, and one dropped out. It's time we called it quits.
I think we just didn't get the kind of player interaction or buy-in that's needed for the kind of character-based games I try to run. I wanted to see characters making choices, pushing the story forward with their actions and interactions, and we didn't get to that point. As Annalist said, there's no chemistry here, and we can't force that.
For my part, I didn't do nearly enough to present a situation you guys found interesting to interact with, so I didn't get the interaction I was after. The game needed a much more dramatic opening than I gave it. Future PbP games I run will put the players directly in the thick of the story at the start, rather than nibbling at the edges.
I've enjoyed the game, but it's time to shut it down. Thanks for playing, everyone.
I can't leave you guys alone for a weekend without this going on.
For my own sake, I'm not sure what people were expecting, character interaction-wise. These things take time to develop and grow. We were all total strangers. You don't just instantly leap from that into being buddybuddies...especially when y'all are relatively egotistic folks (as mages tend to be ).
I'm sorry people weren't willing to give it more of a chance. I was enjoying it.
Yeah, I don't really know what you were expecting as far as chemistry and interaction, but I think it would have developed over time. I'd say we should at least keep going for a bit when everyone is actually here and participating, but in the end i'm not the one running the game.
Well, if this is the end, it has been a pleasure gaming with you.
Darnit, I leave to finish my finals, and I come back to see things just falling apart. I have to admit, the beginning was a little awkward, but the game Tellah was aiming for had a lot of potential. I'm sad to see it go, really.
If you want to give MtA another go, I'll be more than happy to join in the endeavor.
__________________ I hate to interrupt, but I believe we're being followed. The Mimes on the street corner. No, don't look. ~ Mycroft, Broken Diamond
Proud supporter of Dreamscarred Press and Untapped Potential, New Horizons in Psionics. Get it now! It's the best 5 dollars you'll ever spend.
bah. I suppose I should have checked the OOC thread more. I'm back and I'm all caught up with the IC happenings and ready to go some more. I would have posted yesterday but I saw HT got Leva going again. I was gonna wait for some other players to respond.
But if people aren't feeling it, then I guess we should have a discussion about the future of the game. I didn't think the situation was that bad that it had to end. But if it's HT's final decision, I respect it and I'll say that it was good gaming with you guys while it lasted.
Wow! I felt like the game was really grinding on you guys, and assumed that interest had flagged. Admittedly, I've never done play by post before, so it was hasty to assume my assessment of the situation was all there was to it. I thought we had a lot of "meh" out there, and it's encouraging to see so much positive reaction. Above all, I don't want this to feel like a job, and I wanted to get out ahead of that if things were starting to get dull for everyone.
I've really enjoyed the game, and I think each of you has done interesting things and made surprising decisions--the very reason I GM/ST/DM/WTFBBQ is to see that. You're all good players, and I definitely didn't choose any of you on some kind of a "warm bodies needed" basis. I'd have been just as happy to run a solo game as one with five or six players. I like the characters, and I like what each of you is bringing to the game.
I like running the game, and I'm getting the impression you guys are enjoying it, too. I think I may have mistook "needed hiatus" for disinterest. I thought I had lost three out of five players, but it looks like we've still got a strong, four-player contingent. I still want to explore Boston's Awakened society. I still want to describe spirits, ghosts, Clavicularii, Scelesti, Seers, and Tremere. I still want to see brilliant plans put together in preparation for epic confrontations of powerful willworkers. And I definitely still want to see how you and your characters react to the surprises and twists I've got packed up my sleeve.
So if you're still with me, even after a hasty crisis of confidence...
Game on.
Last edited by Hella_Tellah; 16th December 2008 at 01:41 AM..
Yeah though, speaking as a veteran of sorts of PBP's, they can have lulls...especially as holidays draw nigh. This happens for all kinds of reasons, but usually it's a good idea to give a game at least a couple of weeks with no (or little) activity before scuttling.
Players will often try to notify you of absences, but sometimes things creep up, or spring out, and I for one know that a weekend can go by and leave me wondering just what I did with all the time.
Hope everyone had a good Festivus/Solstice/Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/Nothing! We got stuck at my girlfriend's parents' house for way longer than I'd planned for, and despite their excellent bandwidth, I didn't have access to a computer the whole time. I did finish another Harry Dresden book, as well as Orson Scott Card's Xenocide, though, so some good came of it!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Solarious
Another uncommonly known rule of spellcasting: sensory casting doesn't necessarily mean line of sight. Sensory range means you have to be about 200 yards, and have some way of perceiving the location of your target. Seeing isn't really necessary. It does form the best conditions for casting, but it is also possible to make do with hearing, or other methods, possibly granted through spells or other supernatural means. Don't quote me on the last part though: I'm not sure if spell-granted perceptions always count, or count at all.
Casting this way always imposes penalties though as opposed to seeing your target, and the harder it is for you to tell where your target is, the greater the penalties levied. For example, you are in a shootout with a Seer, and she has stopped to reload. You can hear that action clearly, so you take the opportunity to fry the her brain with a Psychic Assault, but it is done at a -2 penalty. Hearing soft footsteps from somewhere in your Sanctum in the middle of the night is a great deal harder to pinpoint, and may induce penalties of -8 or greater.
Well said. To add on: spells of the practice of Unveiling improve or add sensory perceptions, so they can be used to get Sensory range. Knowing practice spells, on the other hand, do not involve the senses, but grant knowledge a priori--they don't alter the senses or require the senses or any form of experience to gain that knowledge, and they therefore can't be used to get Sensory range. Hence the Sense Mind/Life spells can't be used to target.
Spirit Tongue is labeled Knowing, but I can't for the life of me figure out why. It directly states that it grants the capacity to "see, hear and speak with spirits." Knowing the language of Spirits is certainly Knowing, but the rest augments the senses, so it ought to be labeled Unveiling. Anyway, I'd say you could target the spirit at a small penalty while he's talking, but if he keeps mum there's no sensory element to target on.
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