Mortimer Lindquist Powers and Abilities

[zooka]

Hey there, Dresdenphiles.

It's like... a bibliophile, but with the Dresden... and also... like the... Dresden Files.

You get it.

Anyway, on a different forum, I'm going to be making a roleplay character who is an ectomancer and I want to use Dresden Files as a model for her abilities.

There isn't a really great compilation of all of the cool stuff that he is able to do, and I have been listening to James Marsters sweet, sweet voice to soak up all of my Dresden, so I don't actually have a book I can easily go look things up in.

I know he does something really cool with ink on a map.

And I remember him allowing a ghost to possess him temporarily so he could use their fighting abilities.

He controls those wraiths, somehow, right?

Things like that. I was hoping y'all could help me by reminding me of all of the neat things that he does so I can have a good idea of what the character can do. Also, any other details/nuances that you found compelling about his character. Like, obviously, he has all of his ghosty friends around his home. But also, thing like: What tires him out the most when it comes to using his abilities? What lines didn't he like to cross that he maybe could have?

I have a pretty good idea of most of these things, but I also love having the specifics. Unfortunately, I don't always remember details super well and, generally, need a nice list or some other form of organization to really absorb fine details.

Edited to add:

• I am aware of this resource here, but everything is pretty short and sweet.
• If there is a different topic that someone already started that relates to this in some way, please direct me to it! I only did a quick search for this topic and couldn't find anything.

[wardenferry419]

Welcome to the forums. As for Morty, he seems to favor the company of ghosts over living people.

[Lost Merlin]

welcome,

The book you are going to want to listen to is really Ghost story.  He features predominantly in that one and it gives us the best look of his powers.  There is the pulling the spirit in to him to use its knowledge, communication with spirits (I think the map thing was an extension of this, Having spirits mark spots where necromancy occurred), and general spirit knowledge.  There hasn't been much discussion about his abilities as Harry the Narrator doesn't really talk much about what he can do, because in my opinion he doesn't know. 

[Kindler]

Here are a few things Morty has done (from memory):

1. His house is a safe haven from ghosts. He has added ghost dust to the very walls of his home, so that the only point of entry is through open doors—which also require an invitation.
2. His control over spirits is extensive. Morty sent ghosts all throughout Chicago to pull off the map trick—you're talking about a compulsion that spans a very, very great distance. Several miles, at the very least, which is difficult with any magic (though you can argue that the rules for ectomancy are a little squishier than other disciplines).
3. It appears that his abilities were natural, similar to the way Molly can naturally make veils and illusions. But, further than that, he worked at them to get better; Harry states that Morty could very likely join the Council if he wanted to. Essentially, that makes him a black belt.
4. Morty's possession abilities aren't just being a receptacle; he can compel ghosts to hop inside so that he can borrow their abilities, against their will. Not just fighting skills, either; when Dresden popped inside, Harry involuntarily made a shield. That leaves a whole lot of room for magical augmentation; if you can get a wizard ghost to hang out with you, especially one on Harry's level, he could potentially have access to all kinds of things.
5. He was able to rip the Corpsetaker out of Molly's head.
6. He was able to see Butters as a ghost—essentially, just a free-floating sprit—and force him back into his dead or dying body.

Some of the lines he won't cross:
1. He considers the spirits under his care.
2. He does not want to send ghosts into necromantic areas. In Dead Beat, he flatly refuses to get involved, because the necromancers can harm his spirits, or consume them.
3. He has a particular fondness for Sir Stuart, his ancestor, a sort of guardian spirit.
4. He lost his abilities for a while after years of disuse or no use at all. His moral code concerning spirits is, I think, partially related to not wanting to make the same mistakes again (making him something of an Atoner, to use a trope name).
5. He can be charming on camera; Larry Fowler liked him.

Mostly, I like lovable coward characters. Morty is driven by self-preservation, mostly, and typically just wants to be left alone.

[Snark Knight]

2. His control over spirits is extensive. Morty sent ghosts all throughout Chicago to pull off the map trick—you're talking about a compulsion that spans a very, very great distance. Several miles, at the very least, which is difficult with any magic (though you can argue that the rules for ectomancy are a little squishier than other disciplines).

I don't think he was compelling every ghost for miles around to work for him. I think he just asked the ones he was on good terms with. Filling in the map offered them a chance to stick a spoke in the wheels of a threat that was pointed at them too, at minimal personal risk. They wouldn't have needed forcing.

[Kindler]

I don't think he was compelling every ghost for miles around to work for him. I think he just asked the ones he was on good terms with. Filling in the map offered them a chance to stick a spoke in the wheels of a threat that was pointed at them too, at minimal personal risk. They wouldn't have needed forcing.

I meant sending out a number of ghosts that he had available to him (like the ones around his house) across the city. I should've been clearer. The point was that he had compelled them to do this, and the compulsion still worked after distance separated them.

I don't think he quite asked them; from what I saw of the ghost situation in Ghost Story, very, very few of them have the cognizance necessary to understand a request. Maybe "compulsion" isn't the right word, either, but it's closer to what I think is taking place, because it's not quite a command.

[Rasins]

Did you look here?

Not really much, but maybe something.

[zooka]

Here are a few things Morty has done (from memory):

1. His house is a safe haven from ghosts. He has added ghost dust to the very walls of his home, so that the only point of entry is through open doors—which also require an invitation.
2. His control over spirits is extensive. Morty sent ghosts all throughout Chicago to pull off the map trick—you're talking about a compulsion that spans a very, very great distance. Several miles, at the very least, which is difficult with any magic (though you can argue that the rules for ectomancy are a little squishier than other disciplines).
3. It appears that his abilities were natural, similar to the way Molly can naturally make veils and illusions. But, further than that, he worked at them to get better; Harry states that Morty could very likely join the Council if he wanted to. Essentially, that makes him a black belt.
4. Morty's possession abilities aren't just being a receptacle; he can compel ghosts to hop inside so that he can borrow their abilities, against their will. Not just fighting skills, either; when Dresden popped inside, Harry involuntarily made a shield. That leaves a whole lot of room for magical augmentation; if you can get a wizard ghost to hang out with you, especially one on Harry's level, he could potentially have access to all kinds of things.
5. He was able to rip the Corpsetaker out of Molly's head.
6. He was able to see Butters as a ghost—essentially, just a free-floating sprit—and force him back into his dead or dying body.

Some of the lines he won't cross:
1. He considers the spirits under his care.
2. He does not want to send ghosts into necromantic areas. In Dead Beat, he flatly refuses to get involved, because the necromancers can harm his spirits, or consume them.
3. He has a particular fondness for Sir Stuart, his ancestor, a sort of guardian spirit.
4. He lost his abilities for a while after years of disuse or no use at all. His moral code concerning spirits is, I think, partially related to not wanting to make the same mistakes again (making him something of an Atoner, to use a trope name).
5. He can be charming on camera; Larry Fowler liked him.

Mostly, I like lovable coward characters. Morty is driven by self-preservation, mostly, and typically just wants to be left alone.

This is exactly the type of thing I was looking for. Thank you so much! It definitely combines the stuff you see in the two books, which I vaguely remembered, but this provided a lot more detail that jogged my memory and gave me some great ideas.