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Message no. 1
From: shadowrn@*********.com (Allen Smith)
Subject: Auras and Initiation (was Re: MiTS: Changing magic styles)
Date: Tue Jun 12 15:45:04 2001
On Jun 8, 1:31pm, Damion Milliken wrote:
> John@*****.co.uk writes:
>
> > In MiTS rules on MetaMagic it talks about changing your Astral Signature
> > by changing your "style" of magic.
> Um, I always thought that it meant changing your style of magic and
> aura, to make it more difficult for people to recognise a spell cast
> by you or recognise your aura if they saw it again.

I'm not even sure it normally implies any aura changes, other than
those involved in the Initiation itself. BTW, regarding that, while
masking is stated as being capable of making an Initiate look like a
non-Initiate (MITS pg 76), there aren't any rules on the needed
successes et al to astrally perceive someone as an Initiate in the
first place, aside from seeing their Essence and Magic
Attribute. There also aren't any rules on seeing bioware. Logically:
A. Initiates should be better at detecting Initiation -
they're personally familiar with it, after all; and
B. Bioware should be easier to detect on an Awakened subject,
since they're the ones it makes the most difference with.
Here are suggested abilities to perceive the above depending on the
successes for Astral Perception (combined with Aura Reading as usual):
1-2 Successes:
If the viewer is Initiated, whether the subject is
Initiated;
If the subject is Awakened, the presence or absence of
any bioware, and whether the person is in
Bioware Overstress (unAwakened individuals in
Bioware Overstress will simply appear ill,
with no more detailed information available)
3-4 Successes:
If the viewer is _not_ Initiated, whether the subject
is Initiated
If the subject is _not_ Awakened, the presence or
absence of any bioware, and whether the person
is in Bioware Overstress
If the viewer is Initiated, the relative level of the
subject's Initiation (higher/lower/equal), if
any
If the subject is Awakened, the general location of
any bioware
5+ Successes:
If the viewer is Initiated, the exact level of the
subject's Initiation, if any
If the subject is _not_ Awakened, the general location
of any bioware
If the subject is Awakened, the exact location of any
bioware and the subject's Bio Index

What do people think?

Yours,

-Allen

--
Allen Smith easmith@********.rutgers.edu
Message no. 2
From: shadowrn@*********.com (Damion Milliken)
Subject: Auras and Initiation (was Re: MiTS: Changing magic styles)
Date: Wed Jun 13 02:20:01 2001
Allen Smith writes:

> I'm not even sure it normally implies any aura changes, other than
> those involved in the Initiation itself.

Yeah, it does. When initiating, p 58 MITS, you can alter your Astral
Signature. An Astral Signature, p 172 SR3, is your magical "fingerprint".

> BTW, regarding that, while masking is stated as being capable of making an
> Initiate look like a non-Initiate (MITS pg 76), there aren't any rules on
> the needed successes et al to astrally perceive someone as an Initiate in
> the first place, aside from seeing their Essence and Magic Attribute. There
> also aren't any rules on seeing bioware. Logically:
> A. Initiates should be better at detecting Initiation -
> they're personally familiar with it, after all; and

With the proviso that if the target is Masking, then they'd first need to
pierce the Masking before they can actually assense the true aura, of course.

> B. Bioware should be easier to detect on an Awakened subject,
> since they're the ones it makes the most difference with.

Yes, but they're examples of individuals with already extremely complex
auras, most of which is actively magical. A small, non magical, organic,
probably dna matched variation would perhaps be difficult to discern among
all this other information. It could go either way, I guess. I'd just
treat assensing bioware the same for mundanes as awakened. Cyberware
affects awakened persons more severely than mundanes, and yet it is just as
difficult or easy to detect its presence on either.

> Here are suggested abilities to perceive the above depending on the
> successes for Astral Perception (combined with Aura Reading as usual):
> 1-2 Successes:
> If the viewer is Initiated, whether the subject is
> Initiated;

Normally 1-2 successes allows an assensor to determine if a subject is
awakened or mundane. I'd not change this, an initiate is awakened, and
that's that.

> If the subject is Awakened, the presence or absence of
> any bioware, and whether the person is in
> Bioware Overstress (unAwakened individuals in
> Bioware Overstress will simply appear ill,
> with no more detailed information available)

I'd remove these, too, as bioware is more difficult to detect than
cyberware, and at 1-2 successes assensors can only determine if there is
cyberware there or not.

> 3-4 Successes:
> If the viewer is _not_ Initiated, whether the subject
> is Initiated

I'd remove this, too. At this level of successes, an assensor knows if the
subjects Magic and Essence are greater or lesser than their own. They can
infer from this an approximate level of initiation if they wish. I'd allow
an initiate to know whether a subject was also initiated, however.

> If the subject is _not_ Awakened, the presence or
> absence of any bioware, and whether the person
> is in Bioware Overstress

I'd allow this for the subject regardless of their awakened status.

> If the viewer is Initiated, the relative level of the
> subject's Initiation (higher/lower/equal), if
> any

I'd not allow this until a higher level of successes. The viewer can hazard
a guess, based upon the Magic and Essence, and their knowledge of whether
the subject was initiated, as to their grade.

> If the subject is Awakened, the general location of
> any bioware

Again, no.

> 5+ Successes:
> If the viewer is Initiated, the exact level of the
> subject's Initiation, if any

I'd shift the "grade higher/lower/equal" point from 3-4 successes to replace
this one. At this level normally, a viewer knows the subjects exact Magic
and Essence, and initiated magicians are unusual, not easily classifiable,
not similar, and a host of other varying modifiers such as different
metamagical techniques selected, and even different options (sheding geasa,
altering astral signatures) may have been chosen by any two random initiates.

> If the subject is _not_ Awakened, the general location
> of any bioware
> If the subject is Awakened, the exact location of any
> bioware and the subject's Bio Index

I'd only allow a general location of any bioware, and probably a knowledge
of whether the subject's Bio Index was higher/lower/equal to the viewers.
With the much closer similarity of bioware to the subject than cyberware,
it's always going to be more difficult to determine how much there is or
what it is.

--
Damion Milliken University of Wollongong
Unofficial Shadowrun Guru E-mail: dam01@***.edu.au
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