Roles that people have trouble with

[Jingo]

Remembering back, I think some of my hardest roles were magickers that hated the fact that they were magickers, because without the aid of some cheesy "if I don't cast I'll go out of control" plot device (which I avoid like the plague), my characters never had a motivation to use magick; they just did their best to ignore it.  Seeing as they sucked at just about everything else, it kind of limited my play options and led to speedy deaths.

I've mostly avoided roles like that these days, but I'm curious...  How do YOU handle situations like these?

I'll play it as...

"If I don't cast I'll go out of control"

Or, really I just play it like there is some sort of compulsion to commune with their element. I don't really think it's cheesy. It's even supported by the dox.

[Marauder Moe]

Personally I don't like the "I'll go out of control" device either because it's not supported by the code.  (Also, it sort of implies that your power is so great and awesome that it takes a great deal of willpower to keep from exploding or something... which is also not supported by the code.)

I'm not saying it's wrong to play that way, I just think it's a problematic approach.


I do, however, like (and have used) the idea that there is some milder base compulsion for mages to spend their mana.

[DustMight]

It differs based on the character but often it is a case of "I can do this and if I do this I'll survive," or "If I do this I'll have power and influence people."  Basically it comes down to a need equation.  It is not necessary to have some odd plot device.  It doesn't have to be sinister or complex.  I want to drink water, I cast, look - free water."  The inner struggle with loathing of self (or elitism) is what makes these characters great.

[Aaron Goulet]

It differs based on the character but often it is a case of "I can do this and if I do this I'll survive," or "If I do this I'll have power and influence people."  Basically it comes down to a need equation.  It is not necessary to have some odd plot device.  It doesn't have to be sinister or complex.  I want to drink water, I cast, look - free water."  The inner struggle with loathing of self (or elitism) is what makes these characters great.

My only reservation about this is that, if a person truly believes that their power is something utterly horrid and unwanted, they'd probably sooner go buy water.  If they are thirsty and cannot afford water, that'd be an exception  Also, as someone else had mentioned, higher-karma classes have less survival-based spells, at least at first.

[3kanks]

How would things change if you junked all your starting sid, and began in crisis mode?

[Malifaxis]

How would things change if you junked all your starting sid, and began in crisis mode?

Well for one thing, you can't junk your starting sid, you can just give it away.  Unless that's been changed, in which case I'm wrong.  Either way it's not a problem.  Find a templar, make a heavy donation.

Crisis mode almost makes things easier, because you don't have to worry about keeping that 300 coins for the Byn or whatever.  You just realize that you are desperate, you are out of food and water, and you are about to die at any goddamn moment, so you can just move forward like the motherfucking samurai you are.

[Jingo]

I do, however, like (and have used) the idea that there is some milder base compulsion for mages to spend their mana.

This is what usually ends up happening. I'll admit that what you were describing above is pretty cheesy.

[Anaiah]

How would things change if you junked all your starting sid, and began in crisis mode?

Well for one thing, you can't junk your starting sid, you can just give it away.  Unless that's been changed, in which case I'm wrong.  Either way it's not a problem.  Find a templar, make a heavy donation.

Crisis mode almost makes things easier, because you don't have to worry about keeping that 300 coins for the Byn or whatever.  You just realize that you are desperate, you are out of food and water, and you are about to die at any goddamn moment, so you can just move forward like the motherfucking samurai you are.

Sig'd.

[Twilight]

In the south, I've had the character get gemmed because...society expects that.  And once you are gemmed, southern society expects you in the quarter.  In the temple.  Doing magicky stuff.  Don't forget the social pressure (in the south) isn't just that you are hated, shunned and feared.  Social pressure has a place and a role (whatever nebulous role a gemmer takes on in the mind of a commoner) for a magicker.  Figuring out you can do magick in the south, there should be a bit of internal socialization to move into that nebulous role.  So, self loathing vs socialization.

As for the words themselves, easy enough to learn IG if you want to.

[Qzzrbl]

Another thought is that some reluctant 'gickers could get the idea that casting will "get it out of their system".

Or! One could uncontrollably cast by accident.... Or have something horrible happen, as detailed in Zoltan's log of this event.... Which made me lol.

http://www.armageddon.org/original/showSubmission.php?submission=420

[Aaron Goulet]

In the south, I've had the character get gemmed because...society expects that.  And once you are gemmed, southern society expects you in the quarter.  In the temple.  Doing magicky stuff.  Don't forget the social pressure (in the south) isn't just that you are hated, shunned and feared.  Social pressure has a place and a role (whatever nebulous role a gemmer takes on in the mind of a commoner) for a magicker.  Figuring out you can do magick in the south, there should be a bit of internal socialization to move into that nebulous role.  So, self loathing vs socialization.

As for the words themselves, easy enough to learn IG if you want to.

Getting gemmed is a good way to go about it.  When characters get gemmed, they are essentially being forced into a different sector of society, one that will probably (over time) foster a certain degree of acceptance of their elementalism.  Northern magickers/Nilazis don't get this choice, however, and not everyone wants to play a gemmed PC (it can be fun though).

I've always liked to use emotion as a motivation for my characters, so I've kicked around a couple of ideas:

• Make a character who feels, at times, utterly powerless.  You can use this to build conflict between feelings of shame and the desire to overcome that powerlessness.  Already, you've made yourself a personal plot, playing out this conflict until one side wins out.  Making the character weak-willed or indecisive will help.
  
  
• Give your characters a non-magickal addiction that they can feed using their elementalism.  A good example might be a Vivaduan who's a drunkard, a Whiran/Drovian who's a voyeur, or a Rukkian who's a glutton.  While characters like these may feel guilty about using their magicks, their addiction is enough to push them to do so on a regular basis.

Survival situations are good for inspiring believable motivation too, but there's a difference between "survival" and "convenience" that I failed to get at in my prior post.  Filling your waterskin for free is convenient; filling your waterskin because you're thirsty and stranded in the middle of the desert is a matter of survival.

[Synthesis]

Another thought is that some reluctant 'gickers could get the idea that casting will "get it out of their system".

Or! One could uncontrollably cast by accident.... Or have something horrible happen, as detailed in Zoltan's log of this event.... Which made me lol.

http://www.armageddon.org/original/showSubmission.php?submission=420

God damn trigger-happy half-giant players.  Great log until a) the half-giant starts talking and b) he fucking ruins the ending.

[FightClub]

Personally I don't like the "I'll go out of control" device either because it's not supported by the code.  (Also, it sort of implies that your power is so great and awesome that it takes a great deal of willpower to keep from exploding or something... which is also not supported by the code.)

I'm not saying it's wrong to play that way, I just think it's a problematic approach.


I do, however, like (and have used) the idea that there is some milder base compulsion for mages to spend their mana.

Like they have to piss? Or drop a log? Maybe you should take care of spending mana offline as well

[Zoltan]

Another thought is that some reluctant 'gickers could get the idea that casting will "get it out of their system".

Or! One could uncontrollably cast by accident.... Or have something horrible happen, as detailed in Zoltan's log of this event.... Which made me lol.

http://www.armageddon.org/original/showSubmission.php?submission=420

God damn trigger-happy half-giant players.  Great log until a) the half-giant starts talking and b) he fucking ruins the ending.

To be fair, my dorf was really itching for a mage kill anyway. We had to deal with waaaaaaay too many uppity gemmers.

(But it was always fun guys, don't get your panties in a bunch.  )

[Spoon]

Nice log, but I'm with Synthesis. I don't want to be mean, but that half-giant pretty much sums up the title of this thread.

[a strange shadow]

Nice log, but I'm with Synthesis. I don't want to be mean, but that half-giant pretty much sums up the title of this thread.

[Kiara]

Nice log, but I'm with Synthesis. I don't want to be mean, but that half-giant pretty much sums up the title of this thread.