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The Dresden Files => DFRPG => Topic started by: Da_Gut on August 10, 2010, 01:01:57 AM

Title: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: Da_Gut on August 10, 2010, 01:01:57 AM
So, who hexes tech? If you only have ritual - ectomancy, or just Thaumaturgy, do you hex tech like a full wizard? Or is it only folks with the full blown wizard template who adversely affect technology?
Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: Myrddhin on August 10, 2010, 01:08:06 AM
As it's written, anyone (mortal) with even a single casting power, like Ritual (Ectomancy), is subject to the troubles of accidental hexing. The flipside is that those people can also engage in deliberate hexing.
Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: wyvern on August 10, 2010, 01:12:14 AM
Short answer: This will vary by GM.

My particular opinion is that hexing is primarily tied to human evocation; someone with channeling will suffer fewer and/or less severe compels; someone with only ritual / thaumaturgy will usually only see compels if they're actively working magic; someone with only a sponsored magic or other innate power won't hex things.

This tends to be a fairly divisive issue, though, and I know other people have strongly different opinions - a common one, for example, is that it's tied to being a human with magic, regardless of whether that's wizardry, sponsored magic, or whatever else.
Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: Da_Gut on August 10, 2010, 01:26:24 AM
Hmm. So, does a Red Court Infected count as a mortal?
Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: Myrddhin on August 10, 2010, 01:33:53 AM
Well, that's an interesting question, likely to yield several answers. I'd say that they do as they still have a mortal soul, it's just in constant jeopardy from the infesting demon and their hunger.
Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: riff.freelance on August 10, 2010, 03:03:49 AM
For that matter, what suffers from hexing more.....
I know that older machines work better around wizards... but how does that mesh with new more robust tech?
What is more likely to be erased by accidental wizard hexing: an 8-track, a cassette, a cd, a bluray disk, a flash drive, a micro hard drive-ed mp3 player, an external hard drive, or a solid state hard drive....

At a certain point as that list goes on I feel there is less to glitch in the media it self. Some could argue that in basic simplicity a cd, or a flash drive might be less complex than a cassette or other magnetic media. Now the players of said devices not so much but the media....
Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: Morgan on August 10, 2010, 05:19:05 AM
It depends on how often you or your GM compel your High Concept to Hex something and make the story complicated or interesting in exchange for Fate Points. And of course if your High Concept is something that would enable you to Hex stuff in the first place.

Harry's player does it all the time. ;)
Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: Tsunami on August 10, 2010, 08:16:05 AM
Quote from: riff.freelance on August 10, 2010, 03:03:49 AM
For that matter, what suffers from hexing more.....
I know that older machines work better around wizards... but how does that mesh with new more robust tech?
What is more likely to be erased by accidental wizard hexing: an 8-track, a cassette, a cd, a bluray disk, a flash drive, a micro hard drive-ed mp3 player, an external hard drive, or a solid state hard drive....

At a certain point as that list goes on I feel there is less to glitch in the media it self. Some could argue that in basic simplicity a cd, or a flash drive might be less complex than a cassette or other magnetic media. Now the players of said devices not so much but the media....
Anything that relies on electronics or magnetism to store information will be erased.

So:
an 8-track, a cassette, a flash drive, a micro hard drive-ed mp3 player, an external hard drive, or a solid state hard drive....
Totally subject to hexing.

A cd, a bluray disk
Not so much subject to hexing by themselves, since information is stored physically here (although on a microscopic scale). But the machines required to read/write those would very much be affected.
Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: tymire on August 10, 2010, 03:08:30 PM
This is actually explained quite well in YS.  Monsters don't do it because thier nature meshes exactly with thier magic.  Mortals (or anyone with freewill who's magic is internal, not sponsered) are not so in tune, and therefor their is a bit of overflow when power is summoned.  This excess is what causes things to go wrong as it has to go somewhere. 

Harry doesn't so much match up like this as because he is so strong in power (per books only 30-40 wizards match or exceeds him in strength, we are talking olympic level power here), and when you add in the "not so suble" and general lack of control he has, well it's easy to see why tech blows up when he looks at it. 

But remember when looking at most other wizards/minor talents they really don't have THAT many significant problems with hexing.  Mostly they are shown living in your typical houses with typical electronics, etc...  Most of them don't have to live like Harry in a cave surrounded by candles.  Lol, heck Mr. Blackstaff might drive a old beaten down pickup because he's a hick, not because he makes things go boom around him (when he doesn't want them too).  Another example is that Carlos uses semi-auto and full auto weapons, while Harry doesn't want to risk anything but a revolver.
Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: ralexs1991 on August 11, 2010, 12:34:49 AM
I don't think minor talents such as Mort Lindquist have anysort of problem with accidental hexing because in DM it's mentioned that Lindquist has appeared on the larry Fowler show more than once so it's reasonable to assume that he had no problem with hexing Fowler's equipment and he isn't nearly powerful/ talented enough to pull off a spell like the one Harry used to keep himself from hexing
Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: toturi on August 19, 2010, 12:45:41 PM
Quote from: tymire on August 10, 2010, 03:08:30 PM
This is actually explained quite well in YS.  Monsters don't do it because thier nature meshes exactly with thier magic.  Mortals (or anyone with freewill who's magic is internal, not sponsered) are not so in tune, and therefor their is a bit of overflow when power is summoned.  This excess is what causes things to go wrong as it has to go somewhere. 
Generally perhaps. It is interesting to note that the Tigress seemed to cause video feeds to malfunction but her write up did not seem to indicate any ability to hex technology.
Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: mostlyawake on August 19, 2010, 02:16:48 PM
I'm totally running with mortals wielding magic = hexing.  Mortals not even possessing ritual or channeling, just refresh spent on other powers (psychic, were-, items of power, ect) hex only if it seems thematically appropriate to do so.  A mortal with sponsorship always hexes in my games (took it off other people's advice) because the sponsor is still trying to push magic through a vessel that is not shaped to hold magic.  However, in my games if you fully go over to a sponsor's side (become summer/winter knight, or equivalent, losing your humanity in the process) then hexing goes away. The exception to this is lawbreakers going towards outsiders or hell's side, who continue to hex.

I basically made my rules less on logic and more on how I wanted to emphasize humanity.  If you come across Cowl, even though he may have lost free will by that point, I want it to hex because I want you to see that spark of humanity that could allow for his redemption. If you come across the summer knight, I want to convey that humanity has been lost, and thus no hexing (if they somehow reject their role, back to hexing!). If you come across an angel or demon, no hexing, but if you come across a soul-fire wielding vatican priest, hexing (to convey his humanity).  A denarian won't hex unless the mortal is in charge or has been temporarily brought to the forefront (by offering the soul redemption, ect).   For me, this even means that someone like Terra West (a wolf that has become human) would hex if she used evocation or thaumaturgy, as she has "gained" humanity.

Title: Re: Tech hexing - required for who?
Post by: Doc Nova on August 19, 2010, 04:47:37 PM
For my game, it amounts to how much refresh remains and how much was spent on powers...although a few exceptions exist.  RCI, for example,
(click to show/hide)
don't hex.  Neither would a were.  But a summer knight with any refresh remaining (equating to some of their "human soul" remaining) would.  Anything wholly monstrous would not (trolls, vamps, etc) -- although I do like the idea of a "monster detector" being when all the lights suddenly blow out...  A channeler would hex less than a full wizard, but would still hex.  Also, and most importantly, characters will hex when it is dramatically (or comedically) important, and won't when it's not.