Skyscraper Graveyard II: Jealousy and Ambition

[the_druid_droid]

Originally Posted by SiuiS

I was wondering about that.
Other Exarchs re very clear. Don't talk about the gate. Don't worship the gate. Don't even acknowledge the gate exists.

Why?

Ostensibly, because consort with the Gate will burn you out until you're a hollow shell of a thing and you die. Don't look into the Abyss.

Also, re-reading has determined that a Death Master can sever Awakened souls. I really thought that would be Archmastery level. Terrifying.

EDIT: Which reminds me, I keep wanting to get hold of Imperial Mysteries but I can't locate it on Amazon. Ideas?

[SiuiS]

Originally Posted by the_druid_droid

Ostensibly, because consort with the Gate will burn you out until you're a hollow shell of a thing and you die. Don't look into the Abyss.

Also, re-reading has determined that a Death Master can sever Awakened souls. I really thought that would be Archmastery level. Terrifying.

EDIT: Which reminds me, I keep wanting to get hold of Imperial Mysteries but I can't locate it on Amazon. Ideas?

Public libraries have lists of books available throughout their corporation (?) which can be ordered and shipped to you. it's not a guarantee because keeping the book an paying the library's lost book fee is cheaper than finding old books. Some end up on the review in building only list.

Find a friend? I can't lend you a digital copy, and I can't write out the entire thin for you, but I could write out the entire thing for myself and loan you the hard copy in the meantime.

Used book stores. They tend to have a gaming section, and profitable ones move books like pawn fences. Make a request, have them take down the entire title and possible IBN number, as well.

Ask Thanqol politely to ship it to you from australlia, and pay for shipping.

Trawl for FLGSs and see what they can do for you.

That's all I have as far as legal options. In that the books aren't in print it wouldn't hurt White Wolf but it does potentially kick a brick and mortar store in the crotch.

[the_druid_droid]

Originally Posted by SiuiS

Public libraries have lists of books available throughout their corporation (?) which can be ordered and shipped to you. it's not a guarantee because keeping the book an paying the library's lost book fee is cheaper than finding old books. Some end up on the review in building only list.

Find a friend? I can't lend you a digital copy, and I can't write out the entire thin for you, but I could write out the entire thing for myself and loan you the hard copy in the meantime.

Used book stores. They tend to have a gaming section, and profitable ones move books like pawn fences. Make a request, have them take down the entire title and possible IBN number, as well.

Ask Thanqol politely to ship it to you from australlia, and pay for shipping.

Trawl for FLGSs and see what they can do for you.

That's all I have as far as legal options. In that the books aren't in print it wouldn't hurt White Wolf but it does potentially kick a brick and mortar store in the crotch.

Actually, I may have spoken too soon. Drivethru RPGs has PDF and softcover versions of it, which will probably satisfy me...

[Thanqol]

Originally Posted by the_druid_droid

Actually, I may have spoken too soon. Drivethru RPGs has PDF and softcover versions of it, which will probably satisfy me...

White Wolf has switched it's business model to be entirely based on Print On Demand, which is acquirable only through drivethruRPG. WoD Mirrors was the last book they had a traditional print run for. Don't look for White Wolf books on Amazon or other major sites; they'll be overpriced and second hand if they're there at all.

[Deadly]

Originally Posted by Thanqol

White Wolf has switched it's business model to be entirely based on Print On Demand, which is acquirable only through drivethruRPG. WoD Mirrors was the last book they had a traditional print run for. Don't look for White Wolf books on Amazon or other major sites; they'll be overpriced and second hand if they're there at all.

With the exception of the Victorian book, I've bought all my WoD books through Amazon (.co.uk) so far, because that way I'm sure it doesn't get shipped from the US which may incur extra fees.

They don't have a lot (that aren't used and overpriced), but if you're lucky that they have a few left in stock it's not a bad option. The ones I bought were new, and not much if any more expensive than elsewhere

[Tiki Snakes]

Last I checked, a lot of their back-catalogue wasn't available for actual printing yet, though. Still, as much as I am uneasy about them abandoning FLGS's all together, it will be nice to eventually pick up any of them I fancy, regardless of the age/availability.

Edit - Decided against Double Posting.
So, far as I can see and figure out/remember, this is the XP situation. I spent all of the starting XP, but none of the XP that has been earned.

so I should have a total of something like 9 Arcane XP and 11 regular XP.
And the Arcane XP can only be spent on Gnosis (or Arcanum if the storyteller so allows). Does that sound remotely close to correct?

Edit 2 - If I were to decide that it made the most sense for Jack to pursue the Mind Arcanum, he would of course need tutoring. Is it the case that Johnny Saxophone is the most likely candidate or is there a less hilarious and awesome situation that is more likely should one decide to learn the Mind Arcanum?

[the_druid_droid]

Today's schedule changed a little abruptly. Apologies for the lack of a post.

[Thanqol]

Originally Posted by Tiki Snakes

so I should have a total of something like 9 Arcane XP and 11 regular XP.
And the Arcane XP can only be spent on Gnosis (or Arcanum if the storyteller so allows). Does that sound remotely close to correct?

Sounds right to me?

Edit 2 - If I were to decide that it made the most sense for Jack to pursue the Mind Arcanum, he would of course need tutoring. Is it the case that Johnny Saxophone is the most likely candidate or is there a less hilarious and awesome situation that is more likely should one decide to learn the Mind Arcanum?

Anyone in the Arsenal of Democracy can also do it. They all have at least a dot in Mind and it's something of a cabal speciality, and they'll do it for free for a Free Council member.

Johnny Saxaphone's method of tutoring will involve ingestion of quite a lot of illegal drugs.

[Anarion]

So, I'm just considering Tessen's cowardice flaw, and what's about to happen, and I'm wondering if spending the entire meeting with Cyprus screaming would earn an xp?

[Thanqol]

Originally Posted by Anarion

So, I'm just considering Tessen's cowardice flaw, and what's about to happen, and I'm wondering if spending the entire meeting with Cyprus screaming would earn an xp?

You don't have to be a coward to spend any visit to the Shadow screaming.

There is a reason a not insignificant percentage of people decide that it is actually Hell.

[SiuiS]

Originally Posted by Thanqol

You don't have to be a coward to spend any visit to the Shadow screaming.

There is a reason a not insignificant percentage of people decide that it is actually Hell.

I think that's actually due to the arcanum dots themselves. A Thyrsus of spirit is fine, it's their element. But look at it from Tessen's point of view;

At one dot, you gain the magical ability to see all the creepy ghost stuff in twilight that messing with reality, meaning you'll see the hosts, the ridden, the urged. You'll see a child's toy that smoldered with murder. You'll see a string of pearls that cries out for abusive sexual practices. You'll see a balloon calling for both happiness and fear. And you won't really know why.

You get the second dot, and suddenly you can see through the gauntlet. On the other side of the world, all the ba stuff pools and conceals into malevolent entities with the distinct nature of preying on mankind at best. You learn to enslave them by rousing ephemeral objects from quiescence and forcing them improve your skills. You can wrest control over these creatures you've been seeing, keep them from fighting you.

Finally, you get to three dots, and only now can you truly interact with the shadow. Now you can command them as a Mage commands everything. Now you are safe enough in this environment to build an objective opinion, but it's too late.

Contrast that to a Mage who starts with 3 in Spirit, who gets all of this at once and knows its just the way of the world, that seein the gears of the mechanism doesn't make it any more meaning no matter how it'll remove a finger if your stupid. The Spirit arcanum is designed from the ground up to breed two kinds of spirit mages. Those who think its terrible he'll, and those who are all too easy to lump into that hell, as eccentrics and creeps.

Related, I think my next Mage is going to be a santera Moros with a minor in spirit.

-

Completely off topic, but Thanqol: if a Mage were to engineer a thickening of ye gauntlet so severe it caused a barren, bought the associated land, bulldozed it, let the shadow settle, and then set about not only weakening the gauntlet again, but used careful construction, activity and spirit-herding to shape the shadow and the resonance of a place over the course of a decade, and invited aligned awakened to study the effects of fate, prime, spirit, time and space associated with the project... Would you say that would qualify one for Prime and Spirit 5?

[Thanqol]

Originally Posted by SiuiS

Completely off topic, but Thanqol: if a Mage were to engineer a thickening of ye gauntlet so severe it caused a barren, bought the associated land, bulldozed it, let the shadow settle, and then set about not only weakening the gauntlet again, but used careful construction, activity and spirit-herding to shape the shadow and the resonance of a place over the course of a decade, and invited aligned awakened to study the effects of fate, prime, spirit, time and space associated with the project... Would you say that would qualify one for Prime and Spirit 5?

> Decade long magical experiment

Yes.

[Tiki Snakes]

Originally Posted by Thanqol

Sounds right to me?



Anyone in the Arsenal of Democracy can also do it. They all have at least a dot in Mind and it's something of a cabal speciality, and they'll do it for free for a Free Council member.

Johnny Saxaphone's method of tutoring will involve ingestion of quite a lot of illegal drugs.

So, the choice is, learn from the Gun people, or get absolutely smashed with the jazz-man?

I am so conflicted.
[edit] - I'm not sure I'm as conflicted as I should be, actually. I think this may require some Time arcana divining to gauge the consequences. Will have to think about it.

[Lix Lorn]

Jazz-man! JAZZ-MAN!

[Tiki Snakes]

Originally Posted by Lix Lorn

Jazz-man! JAZZ-MAN!

I am so very tempted.
However, I shaln't be following Tessen's example and getting monstered a few hours before something important like meeting a seer or going for a meal with Errant.

Not without arranging for a reliable life-mage to purge my system before hand or something like that, anyway.

Originally Posted by Thanqol

[All human beings look totally normal. Jack's car also has a really nice, friendly and helpful Spirit version]

I found this downright hilarious for some reason.
It's a friendly, helpfull spirit because the car is basically a Pony. A Pony with a Pheonix cutie mark, even.
...If I get time, I may just have to art a ponified version of Jacks car.

[Anarion]

Originally Posted by Tiki Snakes

I found this downright hilarious for some reason.
It's a friendly, helpfull spirit because the car is basically a Pony. A Pony with a Pheonix cutie mark, even.
...If I get time, I may just have to art a ponified version of Jacks car.

The best kind of car.

[SiuiS]

Originally Posted by Tiki Snakes

I am so very tempted.
However, I shaln't be following Tessen's example and getting monstered a few hours before something important like meeting a seer or going for a meal with Errant.

Not without arranging for a reliable life-mage to purge my system before hand or something like that, anyway.

DUDE! Get Kurosawa I on this shoot! Tell him it's partial payment for Tessen, and you like a guarantee to survive the inevitable crash and be able to wok the next day. The payment is getting crazy high like a kite on your tab. Opening his mind to the wonders of a new arcana by the Thor blues brother would just be a bonus.

I found this downright hilarious for some reason.
It's a friendly, helpfull spirit because the car is basically a Pony. A Pony with a Pheonix cutie mark, even.
...If I get time, I may just have to art a ponified version of Jacks car.

Prime 3/Spirit 3, convert essence to mana and vice versa. Create a child's room full of happy pony toys and play reruns from the old show 24/7, build up a nice FiM resonance in the shadow.

Spirit's take on the mien of the essence they feed on, and by converting mana through your body to changes it's flavor; bask in the pony room, come out after a couple hours and feed a bunch of mana to the car.
It will eventually elevate in status to a lesser jaggling, and come to resemble a pony. In the flesh there is a car. In the shadow, a wizard in a dapper suit astride a magical equine lights the road ablaze!

Originally Posted by Anarion

The best kind of car.

Darn tootin!
Although now I'm seeing a car with subtle dysphoria.
"Good car!"
"... But... I'm a pony."

[the_druid_droid]

Originally Posted by SiuiS

DUDE! Get Kurosawa I on this shoot! Tell him it's partial payment for Tessen, and you like a guarantee to survive the inevitable crash and be able to wok the next day. The payment is getting crazy high like a kite on your tab. Opening his mind to the wonders of a new arcana by the Thor blues brother would just be a bonus.

Somewhere in there I think your phone autocorrected in just the right spot to permanently confuse me...

Prime 3/Spirit 3, convert essence to mana and vice versa. Create a child's room full of happy pony toys and play reruns from the old show 24/7, build up a nice FiM resonance in the shadow.

Spirit's take on the mien of the essence they feed on, and by converting mana through your body to changes it's flavor; bask in the pony room, come out after a couple hours and feed a bunch of mana to the car.
It will eventually elevate in status to a lesser jaggling, and come to resemble a pony. In the flesh there is a car. In the shadow, a wizard in a dapper suit astride a magical equine lights the road ablaze!

I can't help but think that flavoring pony mana through Turing's nimbus would lead to unsettling results. That or adorable ones... gonna have to give this more thought.

Darn tootin!
Although now I'm seeing a car with subtle dysphoria.
"Good car!"
"... But... I'm a pony."

The saddest car-pony.

[SiuiS]

Originally Posted by the_druid_droid

Somewhere in there I think your phone autocorrected in just the right spot to permanently confuse me...

Or I'm practicing time magic and am the fourth high as a kite frood in that hoot scene.

But no that's tip tally autocorrect issues. Work, third blues brother... Uh... That's all I saw of consequence.

I feel hung over because of a schedule hitch, I'm bound to get more wrong than right for a day or two more.

I can't help but think that flavoring pony mana through Turing's nimbus would lead to unsettling results. That or adorable ones... gonna have to give this more thought.

It wouldn't have to be Tessen!

Although yeah, I'm feeling a definite Rainbow Factory vibe here. Never let Tessen lean graffiti.

The saddest car-pony.

Naw, carry will be alright. It's the high tech future, bodywork for cars is way farther along than it is for us. Plus you can buy all the pony toys, animate their spirits and let the car devour them! Cannibalistic ritual pony car! Now begins the game of adding to the story sufficiently to add more and more descriptors to the cannibalistic ritual pony car

[Anarion]

Originally Posted by SiuiS

Darn tootin!
Although now I'm seeing a car with subtle dysphoria.
"Good car!"
"... But... I'm a pony."

Name the pony "Car." Problem solved.

Originally Posted by the_druid_droid

I can't help but think that flavoring pony mana through Turing's nimbus would lead to unsettling results. That or adorable ones... gonna have to give this more thought.

It could just look like very solid, sturdy ponies, with lots of matter. Or it could be deathly pony reflections if that's where you're going. This is certainly a line of interesting speculation though. I could totally see Tessen's nimbus doing a little unicorn horn magic glow thing for some of the more direct forces effects such as telekinesis.

Though given our futuristic setting, I could see Thanqol jumping in and going "what, that old show? Nobody has watched it in years, ever since G5 came out."

[the_druid_droid]

Originally Posted by Anarion

It could just look like very solid, sturdy ponies, with lots of matter. Or it could be deathly pony reflections if that's where you're going. This is certainly a line of interesting speculation though. I could totally see Tessen's nimbus doing a little unicorn horn magic glow thing for some of the more direct forces effects such as telekinesis.

Though given our futuristic setting, I could see Thanqol jumping in and going "what, that old show? Nobody has watched it in years, ever since G5 came out."

Nah, Turing has sort of worked out to be more Necromancer than Alchemist. Which is fine by me, since I'd like to clear some of the stigma associated with that; just because he's a Death mage doesn't mean the man has to go around raising up zombies willy-nilly and ripping out people's souls.

Although the latter one makes a good threat for a Master.

[SiuiS]

Originally Posted by Anarion

Name the pony "Car." Problem solved.

Or shut down the game with logic, that works too.

It could just look like very solid, sturdy ponies, with lots of matter. Or it could be deathly pony reflections if that's where you're going. This is certainly a line of interesting speculation though. I could totally see Tessen's nimbus doing a little unicorn horn magic glow thing for some of the more direct forces effects such as telekinesis.

Though given our futuristic setting, I could see Thanqol jumping in and going "what, that old show? Nobody has watched it in years, ever since G5 came out."

Nah, having the arcana to convert essence to mana, means you have the arcana to change your personal nimbus.

[Thanqol]

Originally Posted by Anarion

Though given our futuristic setting, I could see Thanqol jumping in and going "what, that old show? Nobody has watched it in years, ever since G5 came out."

One of my many headcanons about the Mage setting is, "Anything which is policy for Germany's Pirate Party is policy for the Free Council, to the point where one of the party's functions is to act as a mass-communication channel to Free Councillors everywhere."

As a result, mandatory Pony sessions when things are getting too heated is Free Council policy.

As a secondary result, you know how every so often Equestria Daily asks a question like "Where would you be without ponies?" and people say things like "Without ponies I'd still be downcast/sad/afraid/asleep", or "Ponies opened my eyes to the world/magic/friendship," or some variation thereof? A not insignificant percentage of those guys are being completely literal.


As a total coincidence, the show has had uncannily good luck throughout it's next few seasons and movie(s).

[the_druid_droid]

Originally Posted by Thanqol

As a result, mandatory Pony sessions when things are getting too heated is Free Council policy.

I just keep finding reasons that I would join the Council as a Mage...

[Thanqol]

Originally Posted by the_druid_droid

I just keep finding reasons that I would join the Council as a Mage...

Honestly, I think that in a lot of the world the Council is winning - and this is why. You know how you automatically think that democracy is a good thing? And how you're conditioned to believe dictatorship is a bad thing?

In the Perfect Arrow I deliberately explored the idea of the Free Council not as a collection of punks and rebels, but as a collections of punks and rebels alongside elder statesmen, spies and politicians as part of the world's most powerful force.

The Arsenal of Democracy is an echo of that game; a deliberate contrast of the FC's grassroots pop culture with the devastating high power of the Industrial-Military Complex and the NSA.

[Anarion]

Tiki, keep in mind that Hilltop is kind of a sensitive topic for Tessen. Part of Tessen's backstory involved meeting Hilltop, trying to get her to preserve her work, and being ignored/rebuffed. I also selected Hilltop as Tessen's "who do you hate?" NPC during character creation.

[Tiki Snakes]

I'm not sure Jack really knows any of that in particular, though. He is, at the moment, a little oblivious. Or was, at least. Banging dashboards is an obvious enough "This is a thing" signal to clue even a distracted Jack in.

Edit - Also, I selected Hilltop for the "Who do you Love"? selection on Jack's sheet, so, yeah.

[the_druid_droid]

Originally Posted by Anarion

Tiki, keep in mind that Hilltop is kind of a sensitive topic for Tessen. Part of Tessen's backstory involved meeting Hilltop, trying to get her to preserve her work, and being ignored/rebuffed. I also selected Hilltop as Tessen's "who do you hate?" NPC during character creation.

Originally Posted by Tiki Snakes

Edit - Also, I selected Hilltop for the "Who do you Love"? selection on Jack's sheet, so, yeah.

The Odd Couple!

Also, reading in Imperial Mysteries, I finally know what a Qliphoth is. Appropriately named.

[Anarion]

Originally Posted by the_druid_droid

The Odd Couple!

Also, reading in Imperial Mysteries, I finally know what a Qliphoth is. Appropriately named.

You know, I googled that, and found this book. Qabalah, Qliphoth and Goetic Magic.

Far as I can tell it has nothing to do with the mage setting whatsoever, it's just a real thing somebody wrote.

Possible candidate for "No way that's Covert!"

[Thanqol]

Originally Posted by Anarion

You know, I googled that, and found this book. Qabalah, Qliphoth and Goetic Magic.

Far as I can tell it has nothing to do with the mage setting whatsoever, it's just a real thing somebody wrote.

Possible candidate for "No way that's Covert!"

In Mage, a Qliphoth is what happens when an Archmaster goes bad.