Blocking access to the Nevernever

[Keryth]

I got a real problem question posed by one of my players. Twice now, one of my villains has conceded by fleeing back through the Nevernever, escaping the clutches of the PCs. The wizard in the group wants to prevent this, and find a way, thaumaturgically most likely, to block someone's access ot the Nevernever. Is this possible? And if so, anyone know how to handle it?

Thanks

[Taran]

A declaration!  I know it's a concession, but the Nevernever is not a nice place.  Either as part of the concession or the use of a FP/declaration, it might happen that that villain steps into a VERY nasty part of the Nevernever...So while the PC's haven't captured him, he'll be a long time before he can bother them again.

I think the other option, as you say, is Thaumaturgy.  Setting up a scene aspect like "locked down" which would prevent travel to and from the Nevernever.  Like the D&D version of dimensional lock.

The person would be able to resist it, but with Thaumaturgy, you could just pump in enough shifts to make success impossible.  As soon as the guy tries to flee, the player invokes the aspect, the villain gains a FP if accepts.  Now when he concedes, fleeing into the Nevernever can't be part of the negotiation.

Another simple thing would be locking the area down with a Zone border.  You could do this with a simple evocation block although Thaumaturgy would be a surer thing.  Once again, if he chooses to concede, the players have reason to remove fleeing into the Nevernever from the negotiations assuming the block is high enough to prevent travel.

 The problem with Thaumaturgy, is you need some kind of symbolic link to the target.  So if you're locking down a scene/zone, then the enemy needs to be in that zone.  If you're locking down the target (the bad-guy), the players need some kind of link to him.  Maybe that should have been part of the last concession: "sure, he escapes into the nevervever but he leaves behind something that we can use as a link to him"

[Lavecki121]

Plus your group should understand that even if he doesn't flee through the never, he is still capable of fleeing, it is impossible to predict every scenario. What kind of powers does your villain have?

[UmbraLux]

The wizard in the group wants to prevent this, and find a way, thaumaturgically most likely, to block someone's access ot the Nevernever. Is this possible? And if so, anyone know how to handle it?

  If he can control the situation well enough it should be possible.  He will need a link to what he intends to block either the individual or the location - if he can control where the confrontation occurs.  Either way it should take the form of a block - either targeted or a barrier.  As a block it is subject to being overcome...though a good thaumaturgist can set the bar very high.

It is worth noting that concessions are negotiated.  If he's escaping as a concession instead of an action the group doesn't need to accept.

[GryMor]

It's a mechanically trivial block. Against those who normally have to roll to cross, it's marginally effective (they already have to breach the barrier rating of the location). Against those who pass through for free in some locations, it's likely devastating, as they likely don't have the power to actually breach a barrier.

Which elements or what you need to do it in thaumaturgy is less firm, but I can see a bunch of different ways, mostly depending on the sort of entity you are trying to trap. I've done it (albeit in a broader sense, since it was a general purpose magic block) with holy water suspended in a sticky ectoplasm matrix applied via splashed potion. Remember, you already have this situation when dealing with wards and thresholds, this is just pulling a single aspect of that out.