I'm a wizard and I like my tech.

[Arcane]

Wizard goes out for a day, and gets someone like Butters to set up a computer with sophisticated voice recognition software - both audio output and a large screen.  Afterwards, the Butters-alike circles around the whole set, screen and all.  The wizard never touches the computer, and never crosses the line holding out magical energies.  They can however speak their input, because their voices are just sound.  They can't use drives and things, but the computer itself is theoretically doable.

If a wizard has enough money, no need to even do that  Just pay a live-in clued-in mundane assistant whose to sit at a computer and control it and any media systems linked to it for the wizard.  All the electronic equipment would inside a circle, so insulated from stray magical energies.  As long as one has a big screen everything is golden.  The only hassle would be lowering and raising the circle everytime the live-in tech goes to take a break or his shift is over.

A similar solution works for a wizard who wants some of the convenience of a cellphone.  He can simply have a clued-in mundane personal assistant (or friendly non-hexing supernatural) follow him around with a cellphone that's turned off.  When he wants to make a call, check his voicemail, or text someone, he simply draws a circle around his personal assistant, who then could safely turn on the phone and do it for him.  The personal assistatant could even put a call on speakerphone so the wizard could directly participate in a phone call without breaking the circle.

And as an added bonus, Wizard's Personal Tech Assistant makes for a great concept or aspect for a fellow PC. 

[Becq]

Putting electrical devices into a magic circle seems to be a common strategy ... however, doing so would at the very least cut off power to those devices.  Battery-powered devices might still work, but internet would not (including wireless).

Regardless, the bottom line to me is that a Wizard opens themselves to tech-based compels by being a Wizard and having a Wizard-related High Concept.  Anything you do to circumvent that gives you a convenient excuse to buy off the compel with a Fate point, but no more.  If you choose not to buy off the compel, then somehow your magic-proof tech scheme didn't work -- magical energy leaked through the circle, or perhaps the energy of the circle itself caused a problem, or the power cable broke the circle, or ... something.

[TheMouse]

I tend to agree with the people who are doubtful of this. Remember: Older, more powerful, more controlled wizards have even worse problems with tech than young wizards.

Now, could you set it up so that electronics are safe near and unconnected to you? Sure. That wouldn't be you using them, but you could put up a circle around yourself and dictate.

Wizards are just sort of doomed to live low tech lives. This doesn't mean that they need to live drab lives, just ones where you don't use computers directly. You can live an elegant life in a mansion... cooking your food on a wood stove, lighting the place with candles, and cooling your food with delivered blocks of ice. You can even have hot running water if you use a simple water heater on a higher floor and use gravity to deliver it (although it'd be super hot with only the hot water on).

[Arcane]

Putting electrical devices into a magic circle seems to be a common strategy ... however, doing so would at the very least cut off power to those devices.  Battery-powered devices might still work, but internet would not (including wireless).

This assertion is directly contradicted by canon, in which Butters was able to use a GPS device inside a circle without Harry's magic interfering or the circle cutting off any signals. 

Regardless, the bottom line to me is that a Wizard opens themselves to tech-based compels by being a Wizard and having a Wizard-related High Concept.  Anything you do to circumvent that gives you a convenient excuse to buy off the compel with a Fate point, but no more.  If you choose not to buy off the compel, then somehow your magic-proof tech scheme didn't work -- magical energy leaked through the circle, or perhaps the energy of the circle itself caused a problem, or the power cable broke the circle, or ... something.

Now it seems you're just trying to make things harder on players than in the actual books.  Even using circles as a mean to protect tech (a means which has been demonstrated to work in canon) being a Wizard still has its inconveniences related to tech.  For one thing, you can't go around protecting all tech everywhere with circles.  For one thing, I doubt people will just blithely accept you drawing chalk circles on their floors when out in public.  For another thing, the actual methods mentioned on this thread require a bit of effort, resources, and/or inconvenience.

Saying they won't work regardless when both canon and logic say they should seems to me to be a little unfair.

[dger]

About breaking circles:  I would say that anything there when the circle was created is taken into account (like cracks in a sidewalk).  A break would occur if a new variable were introduced across the line.  Also, its suggested (I think) in the novels that some skilled wizards have enough focus to "imagine" a circle without actually drawing it.

About the tech thing: Ultimately its up to how ever your group wants to play things.  Play Dresden Rifts if'n ya want.  Just keep in mind that anything available to PCs is available to NPCs.  You could open yourself up to a cyborg wizard (extreme example obviously).  I totally agree with everything about the theme of the game.  One of which is free will vs nature.  Wizards are powerful people, and they give up the free will to choose a techie life, just like a faerie gives up the free will to ignore oaths and bargains. 

Good job on the idea tho, very creative-sexy-cool.

[toturi]

Having a wizardly High Concept means that the character is subject to hexing compels. But how these Compels are dealt with may be well different.

Some players may play their characters like Harry. They take the FPs and are tech-unfriendly.

Some players may buy off those compels. Other players could be like the OP, play a wizard but want to have tech. For them, I would advise that their characters should have an Aspect showing their tech affinity - perhaps they can be Compelled not to hex.

[Tedronai]

I seem to recall a sidebar somewhere about seemingly contradictory aspects, and the great fun that they are capable of generating.  But it's almost 5am, here, and I haven't slept.  So I can't find it.


This would seem like a great opportunity for using that principle.  A 'tech-friendly' aspect seemingly at odds with the character's High Concept of 'something-or-other-Wizard'.

[toturi]

I seem to recall a sidebar somewhere about seemingly contradictory aspects, and the great fun that they are capable of generating.  But it's almost 5am, here, and I haven't slept.  So I can't find it.


This would seem like a great opportunity for using that principle.  A 'tech-friendly' aspect seemingly at odds with the character's High Concept of 'something-or-other-Wizard'.

It is in Our World - near the write up for Murphy's ex husband.

[Dembarie]

First off Hi all, I am new here.

Just looking at this from the Books perspective, as a game master I do not think I would allow this to happen, it seems to be very much against the spirit of the rules. Wizards are super powerful, but they have a down side, allowing them to be tech savvy would be like saying sure you can play a red court vamp and live by eating rare steak, it goes against what the character is.

That being said if I did the “rods” would have to be strong enough to drain all the magic in the area, and that would mean no magic use in the area.  The reason for this is in Dead Beat

(click to show/hide)

Harry tells butters that wards keep magic in as well as out, and he would not allow a USB drive in his apartment as it would be erased very quickly because of the magic trapped in his apartment

. If the Tech was inside a circle, inside a warded room without a draining device of some sort, then whenever the circle went down there would be a very good chance of blowing out the tech.

Also on the subject of magic circles, in the books Harry makes it quite clear that dust can break a circle. When doing a summoning he makes sure to sweep the area and clean it vary well, making sure that no dusts or stray dirt  accidentally breaks the circle.

Again this is based on the Books not the rules (at work without the rulebooks here), but when I run a game I will keep as close to the spirit of the books as I can.

[toturi]

Wizards are super powerful, but they have a down side, allowing them to be tech savvy would be like saying sure you can play a red court vamp and live by eating rare steak, it goes against what the character is.

Can you play a Red Court Vamp in the first place?

[InFerrumVeritas]

Can you play a Red Court Vamp in the first place?

Of course.  YS72:

Regardless, while the choices listed here are hardly the only ones available in the Dresdenverse, they represent what we think are the best options for the would-be heroes of your game world. Enjoy!

[Dembarie]

Can you play a Red Court Vamp in the first place?

you would also either have to start as an infected play for a while then become a full fledge vamp, and have a GM allow you to stay a PC. Or start the game past the submerged level, as they are base 11 refresh if I remember right.

[Becq]

Note that playing a Red Court Vampires are one of only a few character concepts specifically not allowed by the RAW:

(YS80) "If at any point the character kills another human and drinks its blood, he must immediately “upgrade” to a full Red Court Vampire (OW87). This invariably results in turning the character into an NPC, and an evil one at that."

I added the bolding, but the word 'invariably' seems to be a clear hint as to the expectations of the game designers on this point.  Note that is not to say you can't change this for your game; I'm only commenting on what the rules as written state.

[Tedronai]

Note that playing a Red Court Vampires are one of only a few character concepts specifically not allowed by the RAW:

(YS80) "If at any point the character kills another human and drinks its blood, he must immediately “upgrade” to a full Red Court Vampire (OW87). This invariably results in turning the character into an NPC, and an evil one at that."

I added the bolding, but the word 'invariably' seems to be a clear hint as to the expectations of the game designers on this point.  Note that is not to say you can't change this for your game; I'm only commenting on what the rules as written state.

Ask yourself a few questions when reading that passage:
1) By what means are PCs forcibly rendered into NPCs in the RAW? (this is a very short list)
2) What game mechanic is referenced by the ' "upgrade" ', which 'invariably results in turning the character into an NPC'?
3) Given the above, and the game designers' expectations expressed in that passage, what can we deduce about their expectations for the game environment on a more general scale?
4) If a game has already defied the game designers' expectations for the game environment on that general scale, why would their specific expectations based on that environment still hold true?

[funnybonzo]

This is something similar to a conversation my GM and I had.  I have a wizard from Hawaii.  My GM wanted to know how he got to the mainland since our city setting is in Dallas.  I remembered a few things from the series which seemed pertinent to the problem, and the original question.

First, this applies to the original poster's question about a room.  Mac's pub has an odd, but very specific arrangement of pillars and other items scattered throughout his bar used to unravel errant magical energies.  And Mac's is frequented by all manner of folks from the magical community with varying degrees of strength throughout the day, and it wasn't until the Dark Hallow that Mac's was without power - so unless your wizard is on par with Cowl, I don't think you'd have much to worry about if you were going to have a similar specific arrangement of 'lightning rods' in your wizard's house.

Second, Harry used a suppression spell in order to shut off his abilities (at least temporarily) in Death Masks. (Yes, it didn't work very well, but I feel that this is because shutting power off, or turning it aside is a much more delicate complex sort of magic than what Harry normally does.  He's said that he is no good with subtle magics several times)

Third, we know that running water shorts out magical abilities, also from Death Masks.

So what I came up with was a bracelet carved with runes/pictographs translating to "running water" which when empowered create a magical dampening field around my wizard.  He can't use magic at all until/unless he pulls off the bracelet.

The bracelet has yet to be approved by my GM, but it seemed as though he liked the idea.