| From: | Mongoose m0ng005e@*********.com |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Foci |
| Date: | Thu, 4 Feb 1999 16:07:53 -0600 |
:want to have them constantly active and why they are not insanely
:powerful in SR3.
:1) If you loose it, someone with it can trace you anywhere and
:recognize it as yours if they've seen you before.
That is true of any focus, and even some non-focus magical effects
(active spells and spirits can be traced back to you also, I believe).
:2) Every time you deactivate it, you have to recast the spell when you
:activate it, suffering the drain and everything.
That basically just means the focus is not more powerful than the
mage: it used to be, you kick on a lock, and the spell was active, with
all the casting done (and all the succeces used). And you could it on as
a simple action. Basically, it let you cast two sustained spells very
quickly and very well, in the time it would take to cast one normal spell.
I think sustaining foci make much more sense.
:3) While it is active, it can be attacked from the astral plane and
:hence: supressed (temporarily deactivated) and even destroyed. It can
:be targetted with magic or attacked manually. If destroyed, it's gone.
Yes, that is true. This is not as easy or risk free as it once was,
but most moderate force foci are in trouble (if thier user does nothing to
defend them).
:4) While it it active you are very noticable to the astral plane.
:Assuming you are not a magician, it makes you stand out like you were
:one.
I'm not sure you are any more noticable. Anybody seeing the focus
astrally can figure out what it is, but that doesn't mean the person
holding it is a mage. Its no longer a fancy form of suicide for a mundane
to carry an active focus.
:Therefor: You should only keep them active when you are going to need
:them. You should not leave it lying around in your appartment, in case
:someone breaks in. It is highly expensive and walking around with it
:constantly active can end up in you having to buy it again and re-bond
:it. The less you pay to rebond it (the less force), the easier it is
:to get broken. This is not good. Therefor: Use sparingly.
The same could be said for any SR item that can be destroyed, is
expensive, and may be illegal. That's a pretty broad area, and many of
those itmes attract more attention than foci.
:I get this right? Are they still unbalancing? I have my Wolf Shaman
:with a force 3 Increase Reflexes +3 focus. (I refuse to learn and cast
:increase reflexes +3 at anything less than three force. It strikes me
:as loop-hole-ing otherwise. not to mention it makes my foci that bit
:harder to supresse and a good deal harder to destroy.)
It does apear that that is one spell where force has no real effect
besides "defensively". I would not consider a rating 3 sustaining focus
"hard" to destroy, but it seems high enough for general use.
Mongoose
