From:	snicker@*********.net (snicker@*********.net)
Subject:	Lightning Ball vs Vehicle. Uber Spell or How Does It Work?
Date:	Fri, 29 Jul 2005 14:25:47 +0000

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Gurth [mailto:gurth@******.nl]
> Sent: Friday, July 29, 2005 10:14 AM
>
> According to Stephen Allee, on 29-7-05 12:09 the word on the street was...
>
> > The third option is that the lightning exists in all parts of the
> > sphere simultaneously, but I just can't seem to wrap my head around
> > that.
>
> It's SR magic, so the electricity appears in the whole AoE at the same
> time. If elemental manipulation spells exploded outward, many of them
> wouldn't be able to affect targets out of LOS of the caster, yet they
> can[1] -- so my conclusion is that the effects appear in the whole
> sphere at once.
>
> [1] For example, if you're inside a building with only blind walls
> between you and the center of a Fireball spell that happens to be 2
> meters away from you, you will still get roasted. This would not happen
> if the Fireball exploded outward from the point of aim.

I still rule it as a physical effect, and in a physical effect, there is a timeline. For
convenience in my games, I rule that all AoE spells, regardless of nature, must have LoS
to the center point of the target of the spell (otherwise, you could target Mr. Johnson in
his secure office just because you could see the corner of his window). From there,
Mana-based spells have instant effects, while manipulation spells have a physical effect
(ie, powerball happens all at once, but fireball "explodes"). This is more for
game flavour than game mechanics, but it has an effect on game mechanics. There is no
reason why a physical effect can't hit outside LoS - as long as there is LoS to the
target. (ie, I launch a fireball targetted a meter above where I think the mage is hiding
behind a table. Even though I don't have LoS to the mage, the fireball goes boom right
over his head and the mage asplodes.

I realize few people use the novels as "canon", but I think back to the fireball
that struck Sam (and didn't roast him!) in the Secrets of Power series (first book, I
think). The mage didn't even know exactly where Sam was when he dropped the fireball, and
only Sam's instinctive shielding saved him.

So, long story short, if this were tried in my game, the lightning ball would have to
center on a visible location, and from there, the lightning would creep outward, crawling
and cracking across every conductive surface in its path. A vehicle would get full armour
resistance, and people inside the vehicle would be protected by the vehicle itself.

Man - what a can of worms you'd open up allowing people to target a bomb spell like that
inside a car(1) - assassinations would become so easy...

(1) Not truly inside - target that AoE spell next to the door, and by your ruling,
everyone inside is dead, even if the car is unaffected. Heck, that even makes carjacking
safe and profitable!

-Snicker