From:	"Mark L. Neidengard" <mneideng@****.CALTECH.EDU>
Subject:	Re: EMP technical
Date:	Tue, 29 Oct 1996 18:54:27 -0800

According to Nightblade:
>a clock, a lamp, a trid, a soykafmaker ... vs. a complex piece of
>biomechanical machinery? hmmmmm.

Well, for a Physical Manipulation, you can use the Material Table to get
the target number, meaning you'd get differing numbers of successes for
items within the area of effect...modified by any Hardening present, of
course. =)

>> >**resets** means that the cyberzombie takes 8 blocks of mental damage
>> > and must resist the spell with Willpower
>>
>> Unprecedented. That does not conform to any of the standard Damage codes...
>neither does this spell. I'm more interested in dramatic effect
>translated into numbers ... but again I succumb to your wisdom

Well, um...it's not that heretofore unknown spells shouldn't be made, it's
more a question of whether or not they conform to the guidelines FASA set
up for spell creation (which don't seem to be _entirely_ bogus =)

>> I don't buy it. The combination of Lightning Bolt and "Electromagnetic
Field"
>> strikes me as dubious to begin with, and just the combination of the two
>> should by no means equal an EMP....presumably what you want is a single
>> Physical Manipulation that just makes an EMP within its area of effect.
>> Pick the Damage Code it deals to electronic devices and such and you should
>> be off and running. =)
>
>scientifically a variant sustained electical charge passed through a
>varying intensity magnetic field is all that is required to produce a
>magnetic pulse.
>
>simplified science, admittedly. But science none the less.
>
>again, working out writing dramatics into game-numeric terms. sorry.
>shoot me.

Not at all. If the EMP spell works by calling into being an electromagnetic
field with a varying charge distribution (as I would expect it to) then I
don't think anyone could complain. =) What I was worried by was what looked
like the casting of several different spells by potentially several
different individuals. Presumably that sort of thing would do _something_,
but for an actual EMP of a magnitude that does anything specific, I suspect
(and physics majors can correct me if I'm wrong) that a single, focused
spell is probably a more plausible way to go. =)


>> >Furthermore, the effect could be duplicated if the target has electric
>> >Finally, after executing this spell (both parts), the caster must resist
>> >Force + 1 (S) Drain. Making this a serious pain to cast (no just throwing
>> >it around at street sammies).
>
>So then to take out a cyberzombie the target number should be .... say 13?
>and then let the drain be physical only. That was my initial thought on
>the matter .... that would be F+3 (S-physical) .... that oughtta
>discourage anyone from casting it.
>
>> > I hate to say it, but +1S is peanuts.
>>
>> >Don't all descend upon me at once!! PLEASE!??!!
>>
>> The idea of an EMP spell is not a bad one at all, but all that you really
>> need to do is look into making it as a (Damaging) Physical Manipulation. =)
>
>fine. it was just a trial run ... as indicated at the beginning ... as
>usual on this board, I know regret starting over any ideas whatsoever.
>thanks.

Um. I _hope_ my post was more of "constructive criticism" than
"disparagement"
outright... As I said, I see nothing wrong with the idea of an EMP spell
(in fact, I'm a bit surprised one doesn't exist already).
--
/!\/!ark /!\!eidengard, CS Major, VLSI. http://www.cacr.caltech.edu/~mneideng
"Fairy of sleep, controller of illusions" Operator/Jack-of-all-Trades, CACR
"Control the person for my own purpose." "Don't mess with the Dark
Elves!"
-Pirotess, _Record_of_Lodoss_War_ Shadowrunner and Anime Addict