Author Topic: How do you deal with players who want Scions?  (Read 6337 times)

Offline Cadd

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Re: How do you deal with players who want Scions?
« Reply #15 on: May 01, 2015, 09:06:59 AM »
Whenever a Scion character does something that's particularly in line with his supernatural parent, he has to roll *something* (probably Conviction) and on a failure has to change one of his aspects to be more in line with his heritage. Each aspect can only be changed once and if you replace it with something else as part of your character development, the new aspect must have a reference to the Change. Once all seven aspects have been changed, you have effectively made your Choice and become a full supernatural creature.
I think this is a bad idea. The Choice should be a choice, not a punishment for rolling badly. Especially since becoming a full supernatural is actually worse than death from a continuing-to-play-your-character perspective.
Fully agreed! Never roll something like that - compel!

Offline Lawgiver

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Re: How do you deal with players who want Scions?
« Reply #16 on: May 01, 2015, 06:36:00 PM »
Wow, man. I just had a chance to look at the suggestions and they are...

FREAKING AWESOME!

I think I get where my thinking was bent (from 38 years of D&D). The examples above (from the Dropbear) onwards are... stunningly simplistic.

We're starting at Feet in the Water (6/20) and growing from there (hopefully).

"Trimming the fat" shouldn't be too much hassle and the stuff already listed could be used as future incentives to look forward to.

Absodamnlutely amazing. Ty all very much.
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Offline Rougarou

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Re: How do you deal with players who want Scions?
« Reply #17 on: May 01, 2015, 09:28:46 PM »

Tyche:
Incite Misfortune (ranged, weaponized etc...)


While it may be a bit nitpicky, I wouldn't use Incite Emotion for this because Misfortune isn't an emotion... and because (if I'm not mistaken, don't have my books handy) when upgraded to Weaponized,  it deals mental or social stress, not physical.

I feel this could be better modeled by as a form of Channeling using "Luck" as an element. If you want to modify it to less resemble mortal spellcasting, I suggest a custom power working the same way but removing the focus items and combining the roles of Conviction and Discipline into one of the two skills... I figure you shouldn't have to adjust the cost that way since adding the trapping from one to the other is basically the same as a one refresh stunt and losing the focus items should refund a refresh since that's what it costs to buy the same amount (again, no books right now) of focus item slots with Refinement for Evocation or Thaumaturgy.
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Offline dragoonbuster

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Re: How do you deal with players who want Scions?
« Reply #18 on: May 01, 2015, 10:16:30 PM »
I feel this could be better modeled by as a form of Channeling using "Luck" as an element.

We have an Emissary of Tyche on RagnarokNYC with Sponsored Magic from Tyche that is built around Entropomancy channeling/ritual, plus evothaum. It works very well. "Luck" magic of any kind is entropomancy. Just as you can use it to make improbably bad things happen (frozen turkey falling onto you out of the sky), you can make improbably good things happen to people.

'Cause, remember, Tyche isn't all about "good" luck. She's about "fortune"--not the specifics of "good" vs "bad." Some people have good fortune because of her, others bad.
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Offline Taran

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Re: How do you deal with players who want Scions?
« Reply #19 on: May 01, 2015, 10:53:51 PM »
Quote
If you want to modify it to less resemble mortal spellcasting, I suggest a custom power working the same way but removing the focus items and combining the roles of Conviction and Discipline into one of the two skills...

Actually using Incite physical effect from the custom board (which is essentially incite emotion but it does physical effects) works incredibly well...and does exactly what you're describing.

http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,39160.msg2079136.html#msg2079136

Arcane made a character with it and it's perfect.

Incite maneuvers:  random lucky or unlucky events that might take place.  Leave it to your imagination, but "untied shoe" might be one.

Incite Potent:  damage/attacks.  your ally punches the bad guy who hits the wall.  An iron falls off the shelf and hits him in the head. *ouch*

He steps out into traffic and a car just happens to lose control and hit him, etc, etc, etc,

It's all the same "attack, maneuver, block".  you just narrate as turns of luck.

Here's the actual character sheet
https://dfrpg-ww2.obsidianportal.com/characters/jack-crosby
« Last Edit: May 01, 2015, 11:19:53 PM by Taran »

Offline Blackmako

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Re: How do you deal with players who want Scions?
« Reply #20 on: May 02, 2015, 01:19:10 AM »
The game I am in has a few greek scions: Artemis, Ares, and Athena.

The play and rules sort of evolved over time. We used aspects and compels on aspects to reflect the tidal pull of the parents on the scions.

Artemis:

Female player/character was a virgin. Hunted "evil" in the name of Artemis. Sort of an eco-feminist thing. The GM had her struggle with the sentiment/philosophy call of her mother with the vicious man-killing reality of her sisters. So she had a difficulty in discerning what was the right course of action as given by her aspects and her people. Her character did not really get interesting until the GM fleshed out a culture that forced her to make choices with tough consequences to her choices. She had a mixture of compels, betrayals, and violent scenes. Oh...and White Court Vampires trying to get into her virgin pants. Her powers were speed, incite fear after plugging the prey with an arrow, and bow skills. As she was a new player to DFRPG she decided to play a scion that was sheltered on a Med island with other Artemis scion's and constantly played up the culture clash driven by the interpretations of proper behavior by her people. She did find out that other scion's are not the best interpreters of Artemis' will. The GM would compel the scion a lot around bad male behavior. Especially the ubermale scion of Ares.

Ares

For Ares we went with a chimeric father who had sired a few thousand bastards and was uncaring of their fates. As the scions evolve they find themselves adept at one or two aspects of war. Not all scions are created alike. They had a few commonalities: strength, speed, and toughness. Ares manifested in different forms largely dictated by the greatest bloodletting/war that happened in the region (a nod to American Gods). So Ares in South Bend took the form of a genteel union/confederate general. In Europe more like a Nazi/Ruski form. All scions of Ares had a form of cassandras tears. Visions of war/conflict that draw them to conflict like a piece of meat draws flies. All scions of Ares need to perform an act of glory/fame (via Hellenic Code) to gain the notice of Ares. Then the problems really begin as Ares agenda is complex, unknowable, and generally demonizing an in awful way. To flesh it out the scions of Ares had the goal of becoming "300" an elite force of scions who do the bidding of the gods. Until the scion attained the status of being a "hero" the scion is mortal (as in can die of old age). At a certain point scions do gain a long life. Most don't as the vast majority of scions die young via war and their addition to the most dangerous trade. In one story arc scions of ares were near like roach/xenomoprh status. Hordes of deadly things that you squish in numbers before they squish you. Scions of Ares in the game were generally disliked and seen not too dissimilar than ghouls (minus cannibalism).

The scion in the party was a master of weapons ("The Use of Arms") and manifested the aspect of butchery in war(Honey Badger Don't Care). So warfare would incite a bloodlust that would clash with humane aspects of the character ("Take the Grenade"). The character was molded on Yato of Noragami. A little stray cat godling trying to swear off calamity yet being drawn back in again and again with some seriously bad social habits. To aid in this the scion had a game mechanic flaw. Whenever he used supernatural speed he would gain a mild mental consequence of bloodlust/adrenaline high that represented the peril of addiction to his heritage as he took on an inhuman form. This flaw was readily taggable to characters/monsters that play on emotions. He got taken out by a wrath oriented WCV zapping him during bloodlust and assessing "Honey Badger Don't Care". The scion had a bit of a drinking problem vis a vis PTSD/Horror at his actions ("Children's Eyes that Hate You, Broken and Mad"- Siegfried Sassoon.) As the arc continued the scion was the son that Ares would give the most morally questionable jobs. His package was Strength, Speed, Toughness, Cassandras Tears with a sort of human form and mild mental consequence when using speed (a nod to Guts from Beserk while wearing the armor of the beserker). As the arc continued the agenda of Ares was revealed: For the White Council to go to war and to rescind the first law as the scion was with a party of wizards. The Ares arc created by the scion was not the main arc of the game. It was still a reality vs outside the fae really suck story.

Athena:

That character had an interesting use of 4 pts into supernatural senses. She had the ability to see the truth in conflicts, the ability to divine the best tactical solution causing the least harm, and a sort of call on the GM for a bit of wisdom power. The scion of Ares had a grand old time ignoring the scion of Athena's input. Sadly the scion of Athena's input would more wise, humane, and generally "good." As the party was heavily influenced by a war like mindset the party did not really trust in the scion of Athena. That and the player had her as a scion of Athena and daughter of Morgan. The word "snitch" came to mind many times.

Scions of Whatever "Wiki" can be really cool additions to a game that uses aspects, compels, and GMs willing to flesh out culture pieces beyond Dresden Files. The introduction of Hades in Skin Game sure juiced the campaign. The above posters are right in that its fun to play the Call of the parent on the scion and the struggle that it creates as the agenda of the parent is inhuman. Some of example on fortune and Dionysus I am going to steal.

Offline Lawgiver

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Re: How do you deal with players who want Scions?
« Reply #21 on: May 04, 2015, 05:42:37 PM »
After experimenting with how this can work over the weekend, I think I'm going to bend that "Incite Luck" ability into a anti-Entropy spellcasting thing. Makes more sense for the way we play the game. And, it provides me with a slightly more useful tool for limiting frequency and strength of use through the stress track.

ty
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Offline dragoonbuster

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Re: How do you deal with players who want Scions?
« Reply #22 on: May 04, 2015, 05:52:47 PM »
anti-Entropy spellcasting thing.

anti-Entropy = Entropy. Just give her Entropic magic.
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