Post by Skir on May 12, 2013 13:50:27 GMT -8
Thaumaturgical Principles
Accurate Image
Accurate is defined as "Someone who knows this person would immediately recognize them on sight as the person they know." Using Crafts, it takes at least 4 successes to create an accurate image from scratch from memory, with successes on that roll limited by your successes on a memory roll (Intelligence + Alertness), or the Eidetic Memory merit. The image must include the subject's entire face to be useful, not withstanding trivial obscuration such as normal cosmetics, eyeglasses, or even small obstruction like a small eye patch. If a significant portion of the face is completely obscured (more than 35% or so), or if there are 3 or more successes on a Disguise check, it is not suitable for an Accurate image.
The image must be accurate to their current physical image, defined as including their actual skin and bones. Changes made by Vicissitude or intense battery or scarring would count as they change the person themselves, but changes from a cloth mask, heavy makeup, or other obstruction do not.
Concentration
Concentration is defined as taking a significant mental effort, possibly even the majority of the effort, to the point where it causes a character to be unable to take other actions with or without penalties in difficulty or dice.
The Concentration merit allows its owner to both negate such penalties and also take their normal action on their turn without any special effort that may limit their options of action as prescribed by the given power or ability.
Personal Object
Personal objects are any objects that the individual in question could easily and accurately identify as their own such item in a group of similar items through familiarity. A pair of shoes with telltale wear or frayed laces, a briefcase with your name etched on the handle, and certainly one's driver's license or other explicit pieces of identification would suffice.
A full point of blood always counts as a personal object for the purposes of magic.
Blood Sample
For the purposes of magic, an entire blood point is necessary for any ritual or power that requires a sample of blood to direct an effect. The volume of blood can vary depending on the potency of the blood in question, but a "blood point" is necessary because that is the exact amount of blood that contains enough magical power to be useful for a vampire's abilities. For mortals, this is almost always going to be 1 pint of blood. Elder vampires or lupines may require less, as defined by their Blood Pool statistic (20 blood pool means half a pint, 40 blood pool means 1/4 a pint, etc)
True Name
True names are the extremely specific universal identity for the character or object in question, like an IP address or radio frequency. It is not the same as your "Real Name" or your birth name. The True name is a collection of everything you were, are, and will be as far as the universe is concerned, and it serves primarily as a way to "aim" magical effects at you when you are without other resources such as line of sight or a personal object in rituals and paths that call for it.
True names are difficult to transmit in verbal or written form as they are more of a mystical understanding than actual language. It requires 5 successes on an Intelligence + Expression test to successfully scribe or explain a True Name that you know to another character.
True Names have no additional powers beyond serving as a component for rituals or Path effects that specifically call for their use. This is contradictory to the dialogue given in Blood Magic: Secrets of Thaumaturgy on page 40, where it says that having one's True Name (which is equivalent to having one's blood) makes path powers have no limit in range.
Real Name
The Real Name is the name of a character as the character themselves thinks of themselves. This is the name that is uncovered by telepathy or Spirit's Touch at 4 successes. Any text of a power or ritual that says is gives the "true name" in lower case vs the "True Name" in upper case instead means the real name of the subject.
Emotional Resonance
In order to create an emotional resonance to be later picked up by Spirit's Touch or similar powers, the subject must do more than simply touch it incidentally. The item has to have been used with specific and personal important intent for at least a cumulative minute, be a personal item as defined under that heading, or be involved an extremely intense emotionally charged moment, such as a cathartic murder, suicide note, self-loathing scarification, etc.
Trance
Reserved, in progress.
Accurate Image
Accurate is defined as "Someone who knows this person would immediately recognize them on sight as the person they know." Using Crafts, it takes at least 4 successes to create an accurate image from scratch from memory, with successes on that roll limited by your successes on a memory roll (Intelligence + Alertness), or the Eidetic Memory merit. The image must include the subject's entire face to be useful, not withstanding trivial obscuration such as normal cosmetics, eyeglasses, or even small obstruction like a small eye patch. If a significant portion of the face is completely obscured (more than 35% or so), or if there are 3 or more successes on a Disguise check, it is not suitable for an Accurate image.
The image must be accurate to their current physical image, defined as including their actual skin and bones. Changes made by Vicissitude or intense battery or scarring would count as they change the person themselves, but changes from a cloth mask, heavy makeup, or other obstruction do not.
Concentration
Concentration is defined as taking a significant mental effort, possibly even the majority of the effort, to the point where it causes a character to be unable to take other actions with or without penalties in difficulty or dice.
The Concentration merit allows its owner to both negate such penalties and also take their normal action on their turn without any special effort that may limit their options of action as prescribed by the given power or ability.
Personal Object
Personal objects are any objects that the individual in question could easily and accurately identify as their own such item in a group of similar items through familiarity. A pair of shoes with telltale wear or frayed laces, a briefcase with your name etched on the handle, and certainly one's driver's license or other explicit pieces of identification would suffice.
A full point of blood always counts as a personal object for the purposes of magic.
Blood Sample
For the purposes of magic, an entire blood point is necessary for any ritual or power that requires a sample of blood to direct an effect. The volume of blood can vary depending on the potency of the blood in question, but a "blood point" is necessary because that is the exact amount of blood that contains enough magical power to be useful for a vampire's abilities. For mortals, this is almost always going to be 1 pint of blood. Elder vampires or lupines may require less, as defined by their Blood Pool statistic (20 blood pool means half a pint, 40 blood pool means 1/4 a pint, etc)
True Name
True names are the extremely specific universal identity for the character or object in question, like an IP address or radio frequency. It is not the same as your "Real Name" or your birth name. The True name is a collection of everything you were, are, and will be as far as the universe is concerned, and it serves primarily as a way to "aim" magical effects at you when you are without other resources such as line of sight or a personal object in rituals and paths that call for it.
True names are difficult to transmit in verbal or written form as they are more of a mystical understanding than actual language. It requires 5 successes on an Intelligence + Expression test to successfully scribe or explain a True Name that you know to another character.
True Names have no additional powers beyond serving as a component for rituals or Path effects that specifically call for their use. This is contradictory to the dialogue given in Blood Magic: Secrets of Thaumaturgy on page 40, where it says that having one's True Name (which is equivalent to having one's blood) makes path powers have no limit in range.
Real Name
The Real Name is the name of a character as the character themselves thinks of themselves. This is the name that is uncovered by telepathy or Spirit's Touch at 4 successes. Any text of a power or ritual that says is gives the "true name" in lower case vs the "True Name" in upper case instead means the real name of the subject.
Emotional Resonance
In order to create an emotional resonance to be later picked up by Spirit's Touch or similar powers, the subject must do more than simply touch it incidentally. The item has to have been used with specific and personal important intent for at least a cumulative minute, be a personal item as defined under that heading, or be involved an extremely intense emotionally charged moment, such as a cathartic murder, suicide note, self-loathing scarification, etc.
Trance
Reserved, in progress.