Confused by Item of Power

[eiredrake]

For our Dresden game I came up with a character idea of an immortal assassin. Sort of a combination of Ezio Auditore and Connor MacLeod among other things. His template would be 'Emissary of Power', being the right hand of the goddess Nemesis. Working with those ideas as a base I came up with a pretty extensive backstory and overall the character works pretty well and is fun to play.

I figured, what powers would he need to be this type of character: Inhuman Recovery, to grant Highlander style immortality, Cloak of Shadows, Inhuman Agility₁ and The Sight, to be an Ezio style assassin and Marked by Power to be the chosen of the Goddess.

I'm just trying to make sure that I'm doing things 'right' by the system. Since the process is still a bit confusing to me I thought I'd ask here. My main question would be how much do these items cost in Refresh including the one time discount on one of them. Does one item of power cost 3 or 1 (3 - discount) ?Are two items of power -5? (mentioned at the bottom of YW168)

He actually has two items of power. I basically used the Sword of the Cross as an example. The Eye of Vengeance is what grants his immortality and gives him heightened visual senses. The sword is a weapon allowing him to mete out justice even to those unharmed by regular weapons.

Item Of Power: Eye of Vengeance
Cost: -3
Description: An highly polished black spheroid made of some sort of gemstone the size of a human eye.
Must: Must have a high concept or template appropriate to being chosen by Nemesis
Effects:

• Your Purpose is Not Yet Fulfilled: Inhuman Recovery (-2)
  Catch: The eye must be in the bearer's eye socket. If it is removed, then inhuman recovery ceases. The bearer must sacrifice an eye in order to use the item.
• The Guilty cannot Hide: The Sight (-1)
• Discount Already Applied: +2

Item of Power: Sword of Justice
Cost: ?
Description: Each bearer of the sword finds that when he or she first touches it, it conforms to the bearer's tastes, skills and aptitudes but it is still a finely made sword at least the size of a gladius and no longer than a claymore.
Must: Must have a high concept or template appropriate to being chosen by Nemesis
Effects:

• All creatures fear justice: (same as All Creatures are Equal before God)
• Divine Purpose: The sword was created to bring balance to the scales and therefore can only be wielded against creatures who have seriously wronged someone. The sword will not harm an innocent at all and if the 'wrong' does not merit death (as determined by the Goddess herself), the sword will not kill them.
• Holy: While the deity that created the sword may not be the Christian one, the weapon is no less a holy artifact and acts like holy water  or other symbol of faith backed by the belief of the wielder.
• Its a sword: In it's current form it is a beautiful swept hilt rapier (Weapon: 2)
• Unbreakable: It cannot be broken save through a ritual designed to pervert it's purpose.

That brings me to the last two powers Cloak of Shadows and Inhuman Agility. For lack of a better idea I just attached them to the sword. Frankly though I'm not sure they fit the sword itself. Should I internalize those powers? Or would something like Modular Powers make sense: like the sword grants X points of abilities that vary based on the wielder to make the job he is going to do possible?


₁Inhuman Agility - Just made this one up based on the other Inhuman X traits. Effectively this would give you Peter Parker level agility.

[Tallyrand]

So far as the cost you only get the item discount once, no matter how many items you have, so the Eye is -3, the Sword I would say is -4 and you get a one time discount of +2 for a total of -5.

So far as the Cloak of Shadows and Inhuman Agility powers it just comes down to 'Can you character do these things without the sword or the eye?'

If you have an item of power, a good GM will for at least one story (and no more than once every few stories) force your character to act without those items.  What powers do you still want to have when those situations come up?

[Mr. Death]

The Eye should be -1. -2 for Inhuman Recovery, -1 for the Sight, +2 for the discount.

(That said, I'd put Highlander-style immortality at Supernatural Recovery or higher; they bounce back fast).

As for the sword, I could see Inhuman Speed applying to a blade. What did you have in mind for the Agility power that's not already covered by Inhuman Speed?

[sinker]

Additionally part of the discount has to do with how noticeable the item is, so the eye (something easily concealable) wouldn't get the full +2 (just +1). Tallyrand is right though, it's a maximum +2 no matter how many items you have.

[Mr. Death]

Well, while the eye is small, it's stuck in his head, so it's not like he's going to put it in a jacket pocket or anything. Anyone looking him in the face is likely to notice.

But yeah, the sword would be a +2, and you wouldn't get a discount for both.

[UmbraLux]

A couple of comments:
 - You should only get the IoP discount once.  It will normally be the largest of the applicable discounts.
 - Small items (Eye of Vengeance) shouldn't have more than a +1 discount.  If you're giving a second discount for losing an eye it, and the associated disadvantages, should be listed separately.
 - Costs don't appear to add up to what you have listed for Eye of Vengeance.
 - All creatures fear justice is something I'd rewrite for specific flavor to your deity / sponsor.  That's personal preference though.
 - Divine Purpose should either cost refresh or be modified slightly.  Normally, 'perverting an IoP's purpose' is how you destroy it.  If this can't damage inappropriate targets it's worth at least 1 refresh.  (The cost of a Supernatural Sense to differentiate between valid and invalid targets.)
 - Not sure what Inhuman Agility does, can you expand on it?  To answer your question though, yes you should probably internalize those powers.  You don't gain anything from attaching them to the sword once you've met minimum costs so, unless there's a background reason to keep them there...internalize 'em! 

[computerking]

Also, I think IoP's are required to have a Must of an Aspect related to that item specifically, in addition to your High Concept reflecting your Emissary of Power relationship.

In short, I think you're 2 IoP-specific Aspects short.

[eiredrake]

(That said, I'd put Highlander-style immortality at Supernatural Recovery or higher; they bounce back fast).

I had thought about that but based on the description I thought it might be too twinky. Plus I thought perhaps it could be something I could work up to or something.

[eiredrake]

So far as the Cloak of Shadows and Inhuman Agility powers it just comes down to 'Can you character do these things without the sword or the eye?'

What powers do you still want to have when those situations come up?

Well basically without the Sword and Eye he's a vanilla mortal who's way past his freshness date. Based on what I've created so far I (and based on the scene where he first found the eye) if the eye gets removed he's gonna be a pile of desiccated bones within a few minutes.

The sword on the other hand is basically a weapon that lets me pimp-slap supernatural baddies that would normally laugh at a vanilla mortal. So if Nemesis decides that there's a dragon that needs smiting I have a chance of actual success.

I could, I suppose, relate the Inhuman Agility and Cloak of Shadows to his assassin training. I figure Nemesis lets him learn new things to keep his skills useful in between missions. I'm not really sure how that would gain him supernatural abilities though.

Suggestions?

[eiredrake]

- Costs don't appear to add up to what you have listed for Eye of Vengeance.

I'm not surprised. I found (and still find) it a bit confusing. Can you elaborate? What do I have wrong?

- All creatures fear justice is something I'd rewrite for specific flavor to your deity / sponsor.  That's personal preference though.

Yeah there's a bit more to it than what I wrote but essentially it functions the same as the 'Equal before God' thing on the Sword of the Cross in that it fulfills any catches, allowing me to hurt critters I wouldn't normally be able to hurt.

- Divine Purpose should either cost refresh or be modified slightly.  Normally, 'perverting an IoP's purpose' is how you destroy it.  If this can't damage inappropriate targets it's worth at least 1 refresh.  (The cost of a Supernatural Sense to differentiate between valid and invalid targets.)

Not sure I understand what you mean. Elaborate please?

- Not sure what Inhuman Agility does, can you expand on it? 

Well inhuman speed seemed to be all about running fast and going first in combat and stuff. I was thinking more like Ezio being able to dive off a building and air-assassinate someone or being able to scale buildings without ropes or other devices just by finding handholds. Or being able to Jackie Chan my way up a wall by using two corners. I could see Inhuman Agility being all those things, but I couldn't see myself being able to keep pace with a car for example.

So this is what I came up with: Inhuman Agility ( I appologize in advance as the site is very slow)

To answer your question though, yes you should probably internalize those powers.  You don't gain anything from attaching them to the sword once you've met minimum costs so, unless there's a background reason to keep them there...internalize 'em! 

Ok.. I'll talk to the GM. How would an otherwise vanilla mortal (which is what he would be without these artifacts) obtain such abilities? Could they be rewards or something? Ie: Nemesis sends me to assassinate bad guy X... bad guy X has made an enemy of power Y... Power Y likes that bad guy X has been dealt with. Power Y rewards me with Cloak of Shadows.

[Orladdin]

Well basically without the Sword and Eye he's a vanilla mortal who's way past his freshness date. Based on what I've created so far I (and based on the scene where he first found the eye) if the eye gets removed he's gonna be a pile of desiccated bones within a few minutes.

The sword on the other hand is basically a weapon that lets me pimp-slap supernatural baddies that would normally laugh at a vanilla mortal. So if Nemesis decides that there's a dragon that needs smiting I have a chance of actual success.

I could, I suppose, relate the Inhuman Agility and Cloak of Shadows to his assassin training. I figure Nemesis lets him learn new things to keep his skills useful in between missions. I'm not really sure how that would gain him supernatural abilities though.

Suggestions?

Study under a supernatural tutor.  Repayment from faeries for acts he's done that furthered their goals (remember, they cannot accept a gift without giving something in return-- even if the gift is something he was going to do anyway.)

[sinker]

Well basically without the Sword and Eye he's a vanilla mortal who's way past his freshness date. Based on what I've created so far I (and based on the scene where he first found the eye) if the eye gets removed he's gonna be a pile of desiccated bones within a few minutes.

I could see this being an issue. Part of the reason you get refresh back for an IoP is because there is potential for the item to be lost or taken from you, and while there is that potential here, if the GM does take it from you, you die. That basically means that the GM will be very very reluctant to take it from you (No GM worth their salt is going to kill you on a whim, unless that's what the game is about).

[eiredrake]

I could see this being an issue. Part of the reason you get refresh back for an IoP is because there is potential for the item to be lost or taken from you, and while there is that potential here, if the GM does take it from you, you die. That basically means that the GM will be very very reluctant to take it from you (No GM worth their salt is going to kill you on a whim, unless that's what the game is about).

Good point. Take out the eye and get dried out bones.... yeah that's pretty much game over. There is an alternative then would also fit. Removal of the eye removes all of the powers granted and he becomes a one-eyed vanilla mortal again, which means no more regeneration or Sight and he's at a disadvantage because he has no peripheral vision. I kinda like that better anyway. It reminds me when Top Dollar figured out about the crow and shot it, thus allowing him to hurt Eric Draven. Much more dramatic that way.

This makes me glad I posted here. It's helping to flesh out the character. Thanks guys!

The scene in his backstory where he discovered the eye featured a skeleton dressed in the tatters of a Centurion's uniform and a second one in what was left of a Spanish Conquistador's armor. Essentially the Conquistador figured out that it was the eye keeping him from killing the Centurion and managed to remove it before fatally wounding the Centurion. But the Centurion still had the Sword and still had the skill to use it and struck down the Spaniard. Basically they both died together and the Spaniard's desiccated hand held the eye.

The story (should you wish to read it) starts here: The Battle of Santiago and continues here An Uncharted Island in the Caribbean

The second part is where he actually takes up the eye and the sword.

[computerking]

Since the Eye is what's keeping the character alive, perhaps it would be better served as an Aspect (Like, "Kept alive And Magically Aware by the Eye of Vengeance" or something like that) and make the Eye's powers internal (No IoP) Since when you lose the eye you're dead anyway. Also, since the Toughness power's catch is already removal of the eye, it makes sense that the GM can compell the Sight not to work if you've lost the Eye.

Instant Death upon removal of an item, even an IoP, is kinda harsh and really boring. And they way you put it sounded like you wouldn't have a chance to get the eye back. With things set up the above way, you can still get the eye back in place, so long as you don't get slain in the meantime.

[sinker]

It also occurs to me that your catch is kind-of double-dipping. Since you don't have recovery when you don't have the eye (because it's an IoP and you don't have IoP abilities when you don't have the item) it's a bit redundant for your catch to also be "When I don't have the eye."

I guess I don't think I would mind necessarily if it was a +0 catch, but others might. You should probably check with your GM about that.