The Mandarin (from old Iron Man)

[Belial666]

OK, here's a character that looks and works like the Mandarin from Iron Man mechanically;

ASPECTS:
Eastern Artificer (high concept)
Megalomania (trouble)
Evil Enchanter
Lord of the Rings
Enemy of Progress


SKILLS
+5 Lore, Weapons
+4 Athletics, Presence
+3 Conviction, Discipline
+2 Resources, Endurance
+1 Scholarship, Alertness

POWERS AND STUNTS
Wizard's Constitution [+0]
Thaumaturgy [-3]
Specialisation is Crafting Strength +1, 2 item slots go to focus items
Armor of the Dragon Emperor [-2]
Is indestructible suit of armor with an eastern look (Armor 3, armored fists is Weapon 1)
One-time discount +2
Wearer can Fly as if with Wings: -1
Empowers wearer's crafting. Refinement -3 (focus items only)
Refinement [-3]
Crafting Strength/Frequency +1, 8 enchanted item slots
Master Artificer [-1]
Stunt. When calculating maximum enchanted item crafting power, your Lore is considered 1 higher. This does not apply to base crafting power-only the maximum-and neither does it apply to other Thaumaturgy uses or other uses of the Lore skill.

Effective total crafting Power is 12. Effective Frequency is 5 (with +5 power and +3 frequency crafting focus)

RINGS OF POWER
The Mandarin has the following rings:

Left Hand
Disruption: Weapon 12 physical attack vs endurance 5/day. Take-out or consequences curse target.
Telekinesis: Weapon 12 physical attack vs athletics 5/day. Take-out or consequences wound and kill.
Domination: Weapon 12 mental attack vs discipline 5/day. Take-out or consequences do mind control.
Eldritch Storm: Weapon 10 physical attack vs athletics on entire zone 5/day.  Take-out or consequences transform targets.

Right Hand
Barrier: Block 12 or armor 6 5/day.
Warding: Block 10 or armor 5 for 3 exchanges 5/day.
Unraveling: Counterspell up to 12 power 5/day
Invisibility: Block 10 vs perception for 3 exchanges 5/day.

OTHER MAGIC
The Mandarin uses Crafting and Summoning to make Golems and other constructs of significant power. He also uses Dominated targets in blood sorcery to perform high-power disruption and warding rituals.

[JustinS]

As I understand it, the total bonuses place in a focus is your lore, and you can only use one focus to take an action. So, you can get +5 power, or +2 power, +2 frequency into one item.

Also, I'd say the double lore upper limit of power still applies.

So,
Lore 5
7x refinement.
spend 4.5 refinement on to get frequency +4, Power +3, something else +2, something +1
2 refinement on  Armour of Enchantment for +2 power, +2 frequency for enchantment
.5 refinement+thaumatergy items for 8 items.

Power 5+3+2=10
Frequency 1+4+2=7

Stick the +2 into summoning, and the +1 into summoning control.

[Belial666]

Nope-you can use multiple focus items. The limitation is that you can't benefit multiple times from the same bonus type. I.e. if you use a +2 power focus and a +1 power focus, the result is +2 power.

But if you use a +5 power item and a +5 control item, then full benefits.

[Deadmanwalking]

You can't get above 10 shifts of effect on /Enchanted Items with Lore 5. the designers have been rather explicit on this point.

[Belial666]

That's in the paragraph on spending extra slots to enhance effects. Focus Items are adressed in a later paragraph and give a further bonus. I.e. the Mandarin's effects are strength 7 (not above twice his lore) plus a +5 pwer/frequency from focus items.

[Deadmanwalking]

It refers to every possible bonus, and the designers have been quite clear that that is exactly what they meant, regardless of where it happens to be located. Really. They put it in as a balancing measure to stop precisely this sort of thing from getting out of hand.

EDIT: And looking it over, it's it's own paragraph, in the general Enchanted Items section. Prior to the Specialty rules, I'll grant you, but where else could they put it?

[Llayne]

Yeah, I don't read it like that.

Paragraph talking about defensive items and uses.

Paragraph (more like an outline) regarding adding extra slots.

Then this Paragraph:

"Regardless, an item's casting strength after all bonuses are totaled should never exceed two times the crafter's lore rating - at least not without a very good rationale and a tone of baggage."

It doesn't specify after "extra slots" it says "after all bonuses are totaled."

Then, from the 'later' paragraph you were refering to. "

You can create focus items which are used to provide frequency and strength bonuses for crafting when making other items and potions."

The part I see there says "used to provide frequency and strength bonuses." Since the items provide bonuses, and the "after all bonuses totaled" can't surpass two times the lore, I would rule that it applies.

If your GM sees it differently however, more power to you.

Even so... a 10 shift ring with 7+ uses is still pretty nasty.

EDIT: DMW got here first. 

[Belial666]

Um, after all the bonuses are explained? Or they could say the total of slot, focus and specialty bonuses to item casting strength cannot be higher than twice your Lore. That is two more words than what they wrote.

Maybe it could be fixed in an updated PDF?

[Llayne]

It doesn't go into crafting specialization at all until the next section. Do you argue that If you spend refinement for +2 Crafting strength, and have a lore 5, that your items can go up to +14?

Your arguement appears to be that the bonus from focus items doesn't apply, and yet both specialization bonuses and focus item bonuses are in the same section.

[Belial666]

Fixed it with a stunt. A stunt gives +2 to a skill for a narrow application, +1 to a broad application. Since enchanted items can do a lot of things, I consider this a broad application for a +1. His uses/day were reduced by 2 though.

[Deadmanwalking]

Why do you need more than 10 shifts?! 10 shifts is ridiculous and borderline unstoppable already.

Also, the designers have been very clear that Mortal Stunts cannot aid to spellcasting, though that particular rule is one I myself have no compunctions about modifying or removing.

[Belial666]

Because a 9 refresh wizard calls 8 shift effects at attack +8 without being very optimised and can call 9 shift effects at attack +10 with optimisation. Against a defense 4 target, that's 12-15 shifts of effect, already more than an artificer. Spending more stress, he can go 12 shifts of power at attack +10 without consequences. That's 18 shifts of effect. A maxed blow using 2 mild and 1 moderate consequence could do 16 shifts of power at attack +10, generating 22 shifts of effect.

An artificer with Power 12 still cannot use his focus or specialisation as an attack bonus; he attacks with an unmodified skill which is, at best, +5. He doesn't auto-hit like the wizard and he cannot push for extra power either.

[luminos]

Belial, any argument that a concept should be more powerful because it isn't as good as evocation fails to impress me from the start.  Compare what you can do with artificing with what you can get out of pure mortal stunts.

[Deadmanwalking]

And a 10 shift Block will, as a rule, stop either of those. Considering the magic the Evocator will need to use in his own defense you'll easily have the endurance to just take it for three rounds or so, and you can thus probably wait him out then kill him with Weapon 10 attacks at Superb skill.


Also, 8 shift attacks at +8 are optimized as all hell. Most Wizards at -9 are more like 6 or 7 shift Evocation users. I'm speaking from experience, here.

[Belial666]

Evocation, Thaumaturgy, Sight, Refinement 1 (spirit) gives 5+2 focus+1 refinement power (total 8 ) and 5+2 focus +2 refinement control (total 9). Defensively, you're +6/+7 only. That's a standard build 9-shift offensive wizard. Now start optimising by going sorceror or Sponsored Magic.


This is based on KOFFEYKID's idea:

-1   Duel Wielding (Pistols)
-1   Maverick with A Gun (You are extremely competent with one type of gun, you gain a +1 bonus to all guns rolls when using that specific weapon.)
-1   Hand Eye Coordination
-1   Gunsmith  (Like Car Mechanic, but for Guns, specifically pistols)
-1   True Aim  (like true strike)
-1   Target-Rich Environment

Using a Zeliska .60 cal revolver with special ammunition like explosive or armor piercing rounds (weapon 4) and dual-wielding (weapon ups to 6) you attack at +8, +9 if you face more than one opponent. Using Gunsmith you apply 3 aspects to your guns, taggable 1/scene. That's 3 exchanges at +2 bonus or one exchange at +6 bonus.


So, you shoot. Mostly at weapon 6 attack +11 for three attacks, weapon 6 attack +9 for anything else. Against a +4 defense you do a whopping 13 stress on average for three exchanges or 11 stress on average for any other exchange. Or you can do a whopping 17 stress in one blow, 11 stress if the target survives. That's more offensive power than the artificer and you still get 5 stress for whatever else you may want.

Also taking Shot on the Run, you can use Guns for Dodge. That's a +8 or +9 defense. Most things will miss. Kinkaid is probably one of those guys only he has even bigger guns and supernatural powers to boot.