Focus/Enchanted Item's Tattoos

[Baron Hazard]

a had a friend that in designing his character wanted his character to focus on tattoo's as Focus items. He didnt mention them as Enchanted 'items' as well, but i figured i'd take this moment to get a read on people's responses.

what do you think on the matter of Focus Tattoos and how it'd be handled?

[Deadmanwalking]

I think...that anything that can't be taken away isn't a Focus Item.

The fact that you can lose them is an important balancing point for such things, and I don't think they can be allowed as tatoos for that reason.


Enchanted tatoos might be a non-Lawbreaking way to give others Inhuman Strength or Toughness or some such on a permanent basis, though.

[Rel Fexive]

I had an idea back in the day for an Angel character who found a ritual to bind a demon into magical tattoos that gave him the demon's strength and toughness so he could get revenge on those monsters that killed his family.  Little did he know that the demon he bound was the one he was after, and that it could whisper in his ear and slowly corrupt him to evil....

In other words, a perfect DF character with a ready-made Trouble just waiting to happen.



Another way to do the focus thing though could be via Refinement.  Every Refinement is another set of tattoos giving a non focus-based bonus to particular forms of magic.  But initially, just make it an aspect.  Maybe even the High Concept: Tattooed Mage.

[KOFFEYKID]

I've considered this idea, and I agree with deadmanwalking, it wouldn't do for a focus item, however I think that for thaumaturgy purposes tattoos could be an awesome idea for an aspect you can tag. Perhaps you have tattoos symbolizing protection and safety, and you could tag those when you make wards.

[Baron Hazard]

I had been thinking much the same thing, however, it actually isn't that hard to take them away in the long run of you think about it. In combat, heavy burns would scrub away the tattoo, and when captured hacking the tattoo straight out of the flesh would be sufficient.

That said, I can certainly see where you are coming from. And running with the idea as an aspect may not be terrible idea.

[GruffAndTumble]

Also, using them as a Refinement of Specializations rather than Focus Items could be a good approach.

[Papa Gruff]

Was listening to the Summer Knight audio book this morning and during the council meeting Harry sits opposite of a bald foreign wizard with glowing blue tattoos. Perhaps it's possible after all. Might have misheard or misunderstood though.

Game wise I'm with KOFFEYKID and DMW. Taking away focus items has been great fun in our campaign so far and they probably shouldn't be attached to the body in any way. The glowing blue tattoos surely where just something the wizard put on to look cool. That seems to be the main reason in getting them anyways...  

[Steed]

Actually, IF you played it a certain way, I think it could work.  I mean, think about it.  The kind of tattooing you'd need to do would be extensive and complicated.  If it was broken even a little, even by a papercut, the design would be interrupted.  At best you'd get a malfunctioning focus and at worst, you'd lose the focus benefit until you could "repair" it, which in this case means heal the damage.  The player might think that overly harsh, but I think it's in keeping with the themes of the Dresdenverse in the game.  So you'd either get a guy that brewed more healing potions than Pepsi brews soda, or a guy who was constantly losing his focus benefits every time he took a hit to the tattoos.

If the player didn't want to play it like that, I'd side with the consensus on not working very well.

[Morgan]

I've got a couple of thoughts on Tattoos as Focus Items, first off I'd say that it could totally be done, but if you feel like it doesn't work for your game then don't use them. That said they could definitely work well as Enchanted Items given the limited number of uses per session such items have counteracts the fact that it isn't easily removed. Also if you aren't down with tattoos as Focus Items for Evocation consider them as a good choice for Thaumaturgy Focus Items since they shouldn't add too much of a bonus considering the special circumstances that are required for casting ritual spells. But then again my attitude towards Focus Items is that it is more important to get their feel, theme, or color right then to worry too much about any mechanical min maxing their form might entail.

For instance I've got a player character for one of my convention games that has tattoos as a Focus Item. However since the tattoos also binds a Prince of Hell to his body and soul he would have a whole bunch of other problems should it ever be removed, so I don't worry too much about him getting a nearly permanent +1 bonus to his Hellfire Power.

[JustinS]

It would also make a good aspect "Eldrich tattoos of power".  Invoke to power just about any magic. Invoke to look like a scary magical bad-ass. Compel any time having glowing blue runes dancing over your body might be a bad thing. Hope you are not a stealth mage.

[Bubba Amon Hotep]

What about Tats as Potion slots.  I could see the preparation of potions and the crafting of a tattoo being one in the same.  I could also see the tattoo being somehow a picture of the effect or power. 

Then when the tattoo is activated (Used) it would flair to life, animate in some way and vanish from the skin.  Or in case of a multiple use potion, the ink fade.

Perfect for the wizard to have as an emergency, I need to breathe underwater, or see through glamours.  Even a trapped sunlight, or speed.

[Deadmanwalking]

Yeah, that I'd allow. Those are one-use anyway, the ability to be taken away isn't a big part of their balancing.

[Drachasor]

I don't see a good way to have them as a focus.

Hmm, maybe if a physical consequence would break the focus until the consequence went away then that would work (e.g. cut the tattoo and it doesn't work until the skin heals, like breaking a circle).  That might be too harsh.  If you consider you can use RINGS as a focus, those are easy to take wherever you go (Harry just didn't min-max his focus choices).

[CableRouter]

a had a friend that in designing his character wanted his character to focus on tattoo's as Focus items. He didnt mention them as Enchanted 'items' as well, but i figured i'd take this moment to get a read on people's responses.

what do you think on the matter of Focus Tattoos and how it'd be handled?

I'd let you do it as an Item, but you wouldn't get any discount on the cost. 
To draw from my old Champions days, a disadvantage which isn't actually a disadvantage isn't worth any points.

[Drachasor]

I'd let you do it as an Item, but you wouldn't get any discount on the cost. 
To draw from my old Champions days, a disadvantage which isn't actually a disadvantage isn't worth any points.

Ahh, Champions.  Almost played a game of that before we decided to switch to something else.  My assessment was that character creation doesn't require calculus, but it helps.