Ummmm...   Thanks, but I was sort of assuming that options 1 through 4 were all mutually exclusive and only one was correct.

This Soulgaze that I described above happened during Session 1 of our Dresden Files Campaign set in Boston: “House of Cards”.  The opening story encompassed the first two sessions of that campaign and was just about the best introductory RPG story I have had the pleasure to be involved with.  At every turn, the stakes got higher, and just when we thought that we had a solution to one problem, the gamemaster threw another complication at us.  By the end, we were juggling three or four plot threads against a hard deadline for each.  Well done, and very in the flavor of the Dresden Files. Also, the gamemaster used some of our character generation stories as background bits for this scenario.  If you have the slightest interest in checking it out, including a writeup of those sessions, our forum is here:

http://coloradospringsgamers.yuku.com/forums/41/The-Dresden-Files

But now I will give a more complete answer about why Raz was not in trouble for escaping from prison. 

Raz was denied bail before his trial and thrown into prison, which was perhaps reasonable since the rich young man owned his own jet and so was considered a flight risk.  He knew that he needed to get free in order to clear his name.  But there were also the plots of the powerful fae butler of the Thorne mansion, Myrna.  Myrna made some Bargain long ago with one of Raz’s ancestors to guard the mansion and the Thorne family (or at least that is what Raz believes; he does not know the details of this Bargain and that has always made him uneasy).  In any case, Myrna had Raz’s lawyer (who just happens to be the demonic benefactor of one of the other characters) slip Raz one of Myrna’s rings during a client meeting.  Raz recognized the ring, of course, and planned to use it as a sympathetic connection to stumble his way through the Nevernever to Myrna’s side.

Raz encountered his cellmate Bill as I described in a post above.  Bill was no trouble to Raz after a Soulgaze.  For one, it revealed to Bill that Raz was not the sort of man to harm his sisters, and for another Bill was terrified of true magic.

Midnight approached, the time when barriers between worlds were weakest.  Raz was waiting, having already set up a magic circle using items found in his cell.  He knew that he would be missed; he just planned to return to his cell by morning. Just when he was about to open a rift from his cell into the Nevernever, Myrna opened one from the other side.  She had homed in on her ring to find Raz’s cell.  Myrna was disguised, but Raz recognized her by her actions.  Accompanying Myrna in the Nevernever were another fae and Raz’s sisters Ariadne and Hypatia. Myrna’s plan was for Raz to escape with her.  To cover for Raz during his absence, Ariadne would stay with the extra fae, glamoured up to appear as Raz.  Myrna’s thought was that Ari knew Raz well enough that she could play his part.  Raz opposed the idea of leaving his 17 year old sister in prison, but eventually bowed to the logic of the situation.  Besides, she had volunteered.  But Raz insisted that Bill would not stay in the same cell as Ari.  So Raz, Myrna, Hypatia, and Bill departed the cell into the Nevernever, with Raz’s sister Ariadne and the extra fae playing the parts of Raz and Bill, respectively, for as long as it would take. 

Bill underwent some brainlock due to the experience of travelling through the Nevernever as his first magical adventure, but he recovered. During the subsequent adventures that night and next morning, Bill was able to adjust pretty well to a world of magic.  He hotwired a car for Raz, and acted as a getaway driver.  When it was all over, Raz and Bill returned to their cells with nobody the wiser.  When Bill was released from prison a few weeks later, Raz hired him as his chauffeur, a job he still holds.  Bill is glad that he has a chance to earn an honest living, and despite ogres, faeries, vampires, and pixies, thinks Raz is a pretty decent boss.

This is a significant Soulgaze incident in our campaign. My character, Erasmus Philip Thorne IV ("Raz" to his friends) is the young heir of the House of Thorne, the most prominent wizard family in the New England area, based in Boston. Raz believes that the recent death of his father in a lab accident was engineered by his uncle Lucien Thorne, who planned to take over control of the family before Raz was fully trained. However, Raz was selected to follow his father as Patriarch of the family, mostly due to the support of the family's fae retainers.

One day, out of the blue, Raz is falsely accused of abuse of his own under-age sisters and is dragged out of his mansion by the police. Since he is a fine upstanding citizen, he goes with the police. At his hearing, he is denied bail. Clearly, someone has manufactured significant evidence against him. Raz realizes that he must get free in order to prove his innocence, and to keep the mansion and his sisters from being taken by his uncle. As he is led off to his cell, he is in a foul mood.

Raz is taken to his prison cell. He is already considering what sort of spell it would take to escape the place so that he could have an opportunity to prove his innocence. Raz's cellmate is a very large, well built man, head shaved and sporting numerous tattoos. This man towers over the slightly built Raz. Already, it seems there are murmurs about Raz's supposed crimes, and the large man brings this up in a threatening manner.

"I'm innocent," Raz tells him.

"Right! Everyone in this place is innocent," the large man replies as he moves toward Raz, pounding his fist in his palm a few times. "I've got kids of my own, so I don't take kindly to..."

"I've no time for this," Raz mutters as he looks directly into the large man's eyes. A Soulgaze is triggered and Raz and his cellmate suddenly discover the truth of each other's innermost being. The cellmate Sees that Raz is a person of great power, and is outraged at the false accusations that have come his way. Raz Sees that the large man is certainly a criminal, but not a bad person at his core, having fallen on hard times and chosen the easy way out.

The large man stumbles back. "What was that?"

"Magic," Raz starts to explain, keeping his voice low. "Here's how it is... Uh, what's your name?"

"Bill. Bill Bailey."

"Here's how it is, Bill. I'm a powerful wizard. Yes, with real magic like you just felt. I could pull out your soul with the wave of my hand if I really felt like it. Now, I'm going to be very busy shortly, and I need you to stay out of my way. Understand?"

"Yes," Bill replies weakly. He goes back to the far corner of the cell. Raz starts examining the contents of the cell for items he could use in a thaumaturgic ritual.

Of course, Raz does escape through the Nevernever and eventually manages to clear his name.  Bill actually helps in this.  Later, when Bill gets out of jail, Raz hires him as his chauffeur.   One of Bill's new aspects is "Adjusting nicely to a world full of magic and monsters."

I have a question about how enchanted items (or potions) interact with a Crafting Frequency specialization (or focus). 

My wizard, through his Lore and a specialization and focus (lab equipment) has a total of an 8 strength in Crafting.  He has made the following "potion" (ie, one-use enchanted item):

Umbrella of Cloaking (Spirit based):  4 shifts vs perception of potential observers; covers a small group under the umbrella; duration of 3 exchanges.

Now, let us say that he purchaces Refinement and acquires an additional focus or specialization (does it matter which, aside from the need of the specialization pyramid?) for Crafting Frequency of 1.  Does this mean that he has the equivalent of two such umbrellas that each last 3 exchanges?  Or does he have one umbrella that lasts a total of 4 exchanges?  Is the answer different if this is built as a potion versus an enchanted item?

Thanks for any responses.

Imp, thank you for your hard work.

Or you could run in the modern day, but your player is an immortal centurion or something.

From Bob the Skull, in Fool Moon:

"Only a silver weapon can hurt a loup-garou, and not only that, the silver has to be inherited from a family member."

Also, in game terms, at least, a Warden's Sword can only cut through a level 6 enchantment.  I'm pretty confident that the MacFinn bloodline curse is stronger than that.