| From: | The Reverend <MDB0213@*****.TAMU.EDU> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | TOME Submission: Null |
| Date: | Thu, 9 Sep 1993 22:16:19 -0500 |
Publications, Copyright 1993.
Based on a character from Jack L. Chalker's _The Demons at Rainbow Bridge._
Null is the colloquial term for a being posessing no astral presence, or
without a remarkable and individual one. To the best efforts of science and
magic both, they remain unexplained, and no causal relationship has been
discovered for this strange phenomena.
A Null is, so far as science will speculate, a mutation, a deviation from the
standard genetic pattern of homo sapiens sapiens, perhaps an experiment by
Mother Nature in the world of the Third Awakening. No data exists to explain
the null's lack of presence on the Astral Plane, and most Thaumaturgical
circles deny their existance with a shudder.
Nulls do not make astral "noise," having no astral presence to speak of. This
is not to suggest that they do not have one, rather, this means that they cast
only the shadow of a normal astral presence, displaying only the disturbance
normal for a living mass.
Generally speaking, spells designed to interpret the aura, detect/manipulate
the perceptions/thoughts/emotions of the null are unproductive. The spells are
simply unable to find a presence to connect to. However, spells which merely
require a miscellaneous target or have physical effects operate normally.
Anonymous research in the SeaTac area suggests that combat spell effectiveness
is unchanged, as well as healing spells. Spells which augment existing senses
also are unaffected.
Game Notes:
Nulls must spend priority B (3 in Shadowrun I system) on magic, and must be
base-stock human [homo sapiens sapiens]. They are, however, non-magical: This
merely represents the modification of their link with the Astral Plane.
Neither their emotional nor their cerebral characteristics may be determined
from Astral Space. No manipulation of these may occur, either, as to do so
would require a receptive target for the spell. For all intents and purposes,
a null appears as a body without a mind - physical health may be evaluated, but
any clues as to the nature and/or existance of their thoughts/feelings go
unseen.
Reactions to nulls vary; from merely a strange glance, muttered "unnatural," to
acute digestive upper abdominal distension [regurgitation]. This last is
purely psychosomatic, and seems to follow hand-in-hand with some of the more
fundamentalist magical disciplines.
Magical information extraction methods are useless on a null, so they are ideal
for courier or information dealer positions, and often found in similar
positions both in and external to corporate hierarchies. They are, of course,
still succeptible to more conventional means of coercion.
