Alternate Focus Items

[sireric08]

Ok, so I am starting a game where I'm playing a wizard.  The concept is that he was raised in a long standing White Council family, then broke away from them after he passed his tests and eschewed magic for years thereafter.  He's now being drawn back into the wizarding life, and is making his focus items from scratch.  The idea I have is that he is used to going into public places, and doesn't want to be conspicuous with staff/wand.  I was thinking cloth wraps for an item, basically long strips of silk with runes etched onto them.  The other idea I was having was tattoos.  Would that be too cheesy, since they would be basically un-removeable?

[Belial666]

They wouldn't be unremovable, just more painful to remove.

[Papa Gruff]

Also take notice that there is a power limit to focus and enchanted items that is tied to their size (YW 281).

Depending on where the tats are, as a GM i would drastically limit the power they can have. For example: If the enchanted tattoos could be covered by clothes constantly then I'd consider them a small Item, that can't take more then 1-2 focus item slots or 1-4 enchanted item slots. A large (glowing? *g*) facial tattoo would be able to take more as it is far more obvious and so on ...

Long strips of rune lined silk? No problem there. Would probably count as fist sized, witch can store a lot of energy. More then you need for an starting character in any case.

[Wordmaker]

I like the run-enscribed silk cloth idea. Very cool.

As for the tatoos, there are a couple of issues there. The first is that, as Papa Gruff said, size governs the amount of storeable power.

Secondly, tatoos aren't really items that can be dropped, lost, etc. If you take the Order of St. Giles tatoos as your baseline, they would have to be a power. The St. Giles tatoos are basically a focus/enchanted item that makes it easier to control Hunger.

I'd be inclined to build magical tatoos as a description of Refinement, myself.

[Belial666]

For a starting character, hidden tattoos should be enough. Usually, max for a standard wizard would be +2 offensive power +2 offensive control so one hidden tattoo in each hand. If you are submerged and take 2 refinements, one to raise element specialization to +2 control, +1 power, and one to raise foci to +3 offensive power, +3 offensive control, you can have your thaumaturgy free specialization be a focus specialization, allowing your foci to have a bonus 1 higher than normal for the same size.


And that would make your submerged wizard into human artillery; 9 power, 10 control for offense, 6 power, 7 control for defense.

[Papa Gruff]

And that would make your submerged wizard into human artillery; 9 power, 10 control for offense, 6 power, 7 control for defense.

Care to give me the page where it says that you automatically get the +1 on any item if you choose focus items as you thaumaturgy specialization? As I understood it you are just able to get the bonus, but not get it automatically meaning that you still have to pay with focus points. I might be wrong though, hence the request for the page.

Your artillery example is probably as min-/maxed as it gets. I'm not saying that it isn't a proper stating, it just leaves a character so dependent on his magic. Such high power spell slingers are just a bit to vulnerable in anything but a kaboom magic fight. As a GM I usually try to "punish" this by destroying the PC in social conflicts from time to time. Just saying ... overspecialization will bite your ass in this system, more then in any other one I have played so far. 

[Belial666]

Not an automatic bonus. A submerged wizard (7 refresh) with 2 refinements (natural progression for most wizards).
All item slots go to foci, one refinement goes to foci, the other goes to element specialization. Total of 6 focus slots (+3/+3 offense), plus a specilazation of +2 control/+1 power for, say, spirit and a +1 focus specialization. The focus specialization just allows him to cram a +3 bonus into the smaller available focus size so it can easily be hidden (represented by tattoo foci) - it doesn't give a numerical bonus.




Also note that this is far from being as min-maxed as it gets. A really min-maxed character would have an Item of Power such as a wizard's staff or book of shadows or robes of the archmage that gave +3 refinement with +2 cost reduction so he would get even more magical power at 1 less cost. And he would take "A Few Seconds Ahead" with that last refresh so he could use his Lore (it would be high) to see into the future and prepare, effectively using it as defense against all Physical and Social attacks and maneuvers, stopping possible physical or social reamings cold.
EDIT: Naturally, such approaches should be dealt with by the DM. A wizard that can do 10 power 11 control attacks and has superb defenses for everything might unbalance the group.

[Papa Gruff]

Granted. It might not be as far as it gets when it comes to min-/maxing, but it is hardly far from it .

Back to topic now: There already has been an other thread where tattoos as focus/enchanted items have been discussed at great length. Perhaps it helps or will give you some more ideas: http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,19438.0.html

[sireric08]

Now, another idea I had was for his main attack item.  I figured his elements would be spirit, water, and earth.  The main attack rote he has is a magnetic based where he grabs a bunch of specially prepared coins/shards of metal and blasts them at whoever.  Increase in shifts would represent higher velocity's of the metal.  I was thinking of having each of the shards prepared as a minature focus item, all adding up to onne big one.  How much do you think I would have make the total mass of metal to have it count as normal +1 focus item?

[MijRai]

My opinion on 'alternate focus items' follows a simple rule.
Can you carry it? If Yes, It Can Be a Foci. Now, size rules how much of a foci it can be.

As far as magical tattoos, I'd say if they are obvious they are fine.

[Sanctaphrax]

A ring is an acceptable +1 focus item. Don't worry about the mass of metal.

[luminos]

Also note that this is far from being as min-maxed as it gets. A really min-maxed character would have an Item of Power such as a wizard's staff or book of shadows or robes of the archmage that gave +3 refinement with +2 cost reduction so he would get even more magical power at 1 less cost.

Thankfully, refinement is not one of the standard options for IoP's. 

[Richard_Chilton]

There's a book called A Madness of Angels that has the perfect counter for any "I've got this magic tattooed on me" concept.

Spoiler for a non-Dresden book:

(click to show/hide)

Someone scattered a large amount of ink and paint in the area where he plans to fight the Tattooed Man.  During the fight the colours come alive, painting the Tattooed Man, staining his skin, and then penetrating it - effectively altering his tattoos.

Richard

[Lanodantheon]

My personal favorite focus items/Enchanted items for an incognito mage come from Wynn, a Co-Founder of the E.c.e.es, an occult organization of self-taught Sorcerous I.T. people, engineers and gamers in my Seattle Campaign. These 3 items are really small, I still haven't figured out a really good big item. 

Note: the baliwick of this caster comes from the fact that he's a gamer with a PhD in Engineering Science, an ability called Mnemosyne's Shadow that lets him use his Lore Skill to get Answers and that he has 30 minor talents with similar levels of education and a lot of tools to help him. When he's out on a job, Wynn dresses like a Cable Guy, so he will have items that don't stand out.

Earth Magic Shoes/Boots: They have sigils on the soles so it is almost impossible to spot anything amiss. They put a spring in the wearer's step, absorbing gravity energy. It cna then be unleashed with a big stomp. You could probably get more slots out of it if you made them Steel-toed work boots.

The Pen Mightier: Could be used for focus or enchanted items only 1 slot big, but no one is going to look twice at a pen.

Contact Lenses/Glasses: Make the sigils small enough and they just look normal. Paint them titanium colored and no one looks twice.


I'd also recommend a Gauntlet disguised as a Caste for some extra space.

[ralexs1991]

i really like the contact lenses/glasses idea