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The Dresden Files => DFRPG => Topic started by: Radijs on February 12, 2013, 02:59:57 PM

Title: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: Radijs on February 12, 2013, 02:59:57 PM
The title pretty much explains it all, if a character takes inhuman toughness+recovery, how much refresh bonus does he get from having the catch be fire?

It falls under the category.
"If the Catch is bypassed by something
that anyone could reasonably get access
to, but usually doesn’t carry on them
(like cold iron), you get a +2."


Is that it? Or would the secrecy factor be able to get another +1 refresh?
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: wyvern on February 12, 2013, 04:16:29 PM
Depends.  If basically nobody knows he's vulnerable to fire, it's a +2 total catch.  If some people could figure it out with some research, it's a +3 total catch.  If it's just obvious ("Hi, I'm a water elemental!"), that would offer a +4 total catch... except that catch value can't exceed points spent on toughness+recovery, so he'd only get +3 worth of benefit.  (But could still get the +4 later if he bought toughness or recovery up to supernatural.)

Edit: just to clarify, the "some people could figure it out with some research" level has two sides; there is "He's clearly an X, but we'll have to do some research to figure out what Xs are vulnerable to", or there's the reason most fae have a +3 catch for cold iron: yeah, everyone knows fae are vulnerable to cold iron - what takes research is figuring out if you're looking at an actual fae (there are so many types!) or some other sort of nevernever beasty that'll just laugh at you if you try to hit it with a crowbar.
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: Mr. Death on February 12, 2013, 06:07:08 PM
I'd give it the +1 because, honestly, when faced with something supernatural, hitting it with fire is one of the first things you'd try if it's at all available. Hell, there's a reason Harry says it's wizards' go-to combat magic--when people see monsters, their default combat response tends to be "kill it with fire."
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: Radijs on February 12, 2013, 07:33:09 PM
Makes sense, thanks guys ( or girls )
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: Mr. Death on February 12, 2013, 07:56:22 PM
I tend to include something along the lines of "can you reasonably expect to run into it in a fight?" in the "research" bit. So while it may not be generally known that a specific creature is vulnerable to iron, it's reasonable to expect that in a fight, someone's going to come at you with a knife, or a crowbar, or something made of iron because iron is just so prevalent.

Or put another way, I consider, "Hit it with the crowbar and see if it works" to count as "research."
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: Haru on February 12, 2013, 08:11:15 PM
Or put another way, I consider, "Hit it with the crowbar and see if it works" to count as "research."
Ah, the wonders of science. ;D
(Which is to say: I agree)
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: Theonlyspiral on February 12, 2013, 08:55:01 PM
Ah, the wonders of science. ;D
(Which is to say: I agree)
Really it's an engineering problem:

Quote from: The Engineer
Hey, look buddy. I'm an engineer. That means I solve problems. Not problems like, "What is beauty?," because that would fall within the purview of your conundrums of 'philosophy'. I solve practical problems.
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: Vargo Teras on February 13, 2013, 01:59:27 PM
Ah, the wonders of science. ;D
(Which is to say: I agree)
Likewise. I'd argue that nothing as common as fire or iron should ever have less than a +1 for research, because the dedicated research can easily be performed in the field even by someone who isn't intending to do so.
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: Radijs on February 13, 2013, 06:00:34 PM
Thanks for the advice guys. My player's getting a +3 refresh bonus for his troubles.
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: GryMor on February 13, 2013, 08:58:37 PM
Just to chime in, I've been using the same reasoning for treating Catch: Fire as +3, and have had my character repeatedly lit on fire for his troubles.
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: InFerrumVeritas on February 13, 2013, 10:11:05 PM
Just to chime in, I've been using the same reasoning for treating Catch: Fire as +3, and have had my character repeatedly lit on fire for his troubles.

Well yeah.  What else did you expect to happen?
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: GryMor on February 14, 2013, 02:04:32 AM
Well yeah.  What else did you expect to happen?

Kind of expected to be attacked with fire. What actually happened (most recently) was 'slightly' different. No, instead of being attacked, the blasted Fallen I pounce (and poison, woo hoo!) is wearing some armor, that when penetrated, applies 'On Fire' at 9 shifts, which shortly there after burns off my wings (spell generated, think conjured biology, so only bad from the perspective of no longer flying), resulting in a flaming cat auguring into the bay.
Title: Re: Refresh bonus for the catch: Fire?
Post by: wyvern on February 14, 2013, 04:49:25 PM
Kind of expected to be attacked with fire. What actually happened (most recently) was 'slightly' different. No, instead of being attacked, the blasted Fallen I pounce (and poison, woo hoo!) is wearing some armor, that when penetrated, applies 'On Fire' at 9 shifts, which shortly there after burns off my wings (spell generated, think conjured biology, so only bad from the perspective of no longer flying), resulting in a flaming cat auguring into the bay.

Sounds like fun!