Shadow magic - shadow nightmare

[Fantômas]

“Do you wanna see something really scary?”


Target/s see something really scary. Willpower roll to not run away in fear.

Willx1 - it’s just shadows, nothing to be scared of
Willx3 - negative to actions as shaken
Willx5 - i’m Out of here
Greater than willx5 - flee, loose san, loose bodily function control etc

Possibly too harsh (as to what to make the willpower rolls by). Or perhaps contested will roll vs the caster?

[logan9a]

Will x1 - Meh
Will x3 - Lose one action drawing back and looking afraid
Will x5 - Stunned for d4 rounds (-30% to all actions) except fleeing (their choice - stay or run)
Fail will x5 - Now you're taking actual san loss - 1/d6
Fumble will x3: Void yourself, curl into a ball and pass out in your own filth. Also san loss d4/d10 as all of your worst fears are made manifest.

Note - each time the same caster attempts this same spell against the same target, the target gets a +10 to their resistance roll as they realize (perhaps slowly) that it is all BS.

Thoughts?

[Fantômas]

Depends on how powerful you want the spell to be/how hard to resist (both in the hands of an NPC casting it at a player and a player casting it on a npc). If the average person has a willpower of 13, then they have to roll 39% or less not to be affected badly. However It's not something that could be cast anywhere, due to the restrictions on most of the spells in this tree.

Also, single target or area effect/multiple targets?

[logan9a]

I was thinking single target, especially with a better than half charge of loss of an action - though honestly I'm not sure how fierce that is. We cancel each other out - same as attack and parry no?

[Happy Fun Ball]

Sounds like a perfectly good spell. Maybe call it "Dread fear," though "living nightmare" does have a nice ring to it.

Alternatively, it could be prompting a flight instinct (or fight, flight, freak, possibly) based on a WIL or SAN check.

Honestly, at the point where it's fight/flight/freak, that would just be "Instill temporary insanity," the save against which is WIL x3. That seems a little OP to me. What do you think?

[Fantômas]

My initial thoughts on the spell title was that the nightmares were formed from shadow (being part of that tree), hence the title.

Was also thinking the spell would be towards the end of the tree, hence a little more powerful than the low level stuff.

I'm thinking the lower will effects should be part of the higher will, otherwise failing a willx5 is actually the best roll to make beisdes a willx1



Will x1 - Meh
Will x3 - Lose one action drawing back and looking afraid
Will x5 - Lose one action drawing back and looking afraid, as well as stunned for d4 rounds (-30% to all actions) except fleeing (their choice - stay or run)
Fail will x5 - Now you're taking actual san loss - 1/d6 on top of losing one action drawing back and looking afraid, as well as stunned for d4 rounds (-30% to all actions) except fleeing (their choice - stay or run)
Fumble will x3: Void yourself, curl into a ball and pass out in your own filth. Also san loss d4/d10 as all of your worst fears are made manifest.

Note - each time the same caster attempts this same spell against the same target, the target gets a +10 to their resistance roll as they realize (perhaps slowly) that it is all BS.

[Happy Fun Ball]

Sept 7, 2018 4:21:32 GMT Fantômas said:

My initial thoughts on the spell title was that the nightmares were formed from shadow (being part of that tree), hence the title.

Was also thinking the spell would be towards the end of the tree, hence a little more powerful than the low level stuff.

I'm thinking the lower will effects should be part of the higher will, otherwise failing a willx5 is actually the best roll to make beisdes a willx1



Will x1 - Meh
Will x3 - Lose one action drawing back and looking afraid
Will x5 - Lose one action drawing back and looking afraid, as well as stunned for d4 rounds (-30% to all actions) except fleeing (their choice - stay or run)
Fail will x5 - Now you're taking actual san loss - 1/d6 on top of losing one action drawing back and looking afraid, as well as stunned for d4 rounds (-30% to all actions) except fleeing (their choice - stay or run)
Fumble will x3: Void yourself, curl into a ball and pass out in your own filth. Also san loss d4/d10 as all of your worst fears are made manifest.

Note - each time the same caster attempts this same spell against the same target, the target gets a +10 to their resistance roll as they realize (perhaps slowly) that it is all BS.

That fail WIL x5 effect is too powerful, IMO. If they roll a five or a six on a d6, you're literally able to cause temporary insanity. I think the spell should be capped off at less than 5 SAN loss, so that isn't a possibility. Definitely, fumble should only be fail WIL x5 effects, plus incapacitated by fear, perhaps for the entire combat, not a possible d10 SAN loss. That just seems way OP.

I like the growing disbelief effect. I now understand why you're calling it "Shadow nightmare." Honestly, I think just calling it "Nightmare" is good enough. My "Twilight" suggestion could be a lesser version of this.

[logan9a]

This is the spell I keep saying 'no, I don't want it' to.

[Fantômas]

Sept 8, 2018 18:22:10 GMT logan9a said:

This is the spell I keep saying 'no, I don't want it' to.

I've not seen you say that previously in this thread.

In regards to the slight possibility of san loss. There are spell abilities that some PCs have (and possibly spells) that just seeing them successfully cast cause san roll with san loss. This particularly spell can only be cast in certain circumstances, would be a higher rank spell and only if those conditions are met and the spell successfully cast, there is a chance (that can be hero pointed to reroll) that there is san loss.

[logan9a]

I'd like to not do any san loss spells.

[Fantômas]

Will x1 - Meh
Will x3 - Lose one action drawing back and looking afraid
Will x5 - Lose one action drawing back and looking afraid, as well as stunned for d4 rounds (-30% to all actions) except fleeing (their choice - stay or run)
Fail will x5 - Flee screaming for d4 rounds, then stunned for d3 rounds (-30% to all actions) except fleeing (their choice - stay or run)
Fumble will x3: Void yourself, curl into a ball and pass out in your own filth as all of your worst fears are made manifest.

Note - each time the same caster attempts this same spell against the same target, the target gets a +10 to their resistance roll as they realize (perhaps slowly) that it is all BS.

[logan9a]

Hum. That is looking at a chart during combat. If we really wanted to have a spell like this we could have no san loss but trigger (unless they make a willpower roll) a fight/flight/freak reaction.

[Fantômas]

Sept 10, 2018 9:17:09 GMT logan9a said:

Hum. That is looking at a chart during combat. If we really wanted to have a spell like this we could have no san loss but trigger (unless they make a willpower roll) a fight/flight/freak reaction.

Anytime sopmeone casts a spell they would be looking at the stats/descrip of spell, be it in or out of combat, so not sure what diff there would be

[logan9a]

Sept 10, 2018 23:36:03 GMT Fantômas said:

Sept 10, 2018 9:17:09 GMT logan9a said:

Hum. That is looking at a chart during combat. If we really wanted to have a spell like this we could have no san loss but trigger (unless they make a willpower roll) a fight/flight/freak reaction.

Anytime sopmeone casts a spell they would be looking at the stats/descrip of spell, be it in or out of combat, so not sure what diff there would be

The shorter we can make the spell description and the easier, the better. Eventually, people can memorize it. Just causing a fight flight freak on someone is a pretty good effect though yes? Plus, with many of the combatants 30% is all they got.

[Fantômas]

shadow nightmare (credit: Pete, Russ)
Casting time: 1 round
Range: 10m
Duration: instant
MP cost: 6mp
Target: single person
“Do you wanna see something really scary?” If the caster succeeds in Will vs Will, the target sees the shadows as their greatest nightmares, which provokes a fight flight freak response in the target.

or

shadow nightmare (credit: Pete, Russ)
Casting time: 1 round
Range: 10m
Duration: instant
MP cost: 6mp
Target: single person
“Do you wanna see something really scary?” The Target must succeed at willx3 to resist. If the target fails, they see the shadows as their greatest nightmares, which provokes a fight flight freak response in the them.


Russ first suggested changing the spell to prompt a fight, flight, freak response, hence why in credit.